Top Dutch MP slams Turkey's 'belligerence' against Israel

[King_David]

Middle East expert Kortenoeven accuses Turkey of "sliding into an abyss of Islamic extremism," criticizes foreign policies at OSCE meeting.

Talkbacks (2)



BERLIN - ­Wim Kortenoeven, a prominent Dutch MP and Middle East expert, blasted Turkey's government for its jingoistic policies toward Cyprus and Israel on Sunday at a meeting of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Kortenoeven's sharp criticisms of Turkey's foreign policies and repression of press freedoms elicited an irritated response from Turkey's representative at the OSCE session on security in the Mediterranean area.


According to a transcript and audio tape of Kortenoeven's remarks, he stated: "Turkey, a member state of NATO, is also increasingly belligerent towards the Jewish State of Israel. Threats and baseless accusations are issued against Israel ever more frequently. And provocations are rampant. Israeli freighters are harassed by Turkish warships."

The OSCE is comprised of 56 States from Europe, Central Asia and North America and is designed to prevent global conflicts and function as an early warning system for military confrontations.

Kortenoeven, a member of the Dutch Party for Freedom who has written extensively on the Middle East, continued: "Turkey also objects to Israel's legitimate desire to drill for natural gas in its own exclusive economic zone. Turkish warships are backing up threats against Israel's sovereignty. A simple mistake in this combustible situation might spark a military confrontation. Also troubling and dangerous is Turkey's sympathy for the Hamas terror organization and Turkey's attempts to undermine Israel's legitimate right to supervise the maritime routes to Gaza."

The Dutch MP added that "Turkey is sliding into the abyss of Islamic extremism and authoritarianism. This is visible on the inside and on the outside."

To buttress his contention, Kortenoeven noted that freedom of speech in Turkey is increasingly suppressed and that many journalists have been jailed for speaking out.

"The Turkish cartoonist Bahadir Baruter is to be tried for renouncing Allah in a cartoon. He might get a year in jail for that," he said.


http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=241207