[ad_1]
The Franco-Turkish conflict does not seem to stop in a war of declarations and declarations, but is heading towards practical steps that may take the form of economic and military sanctions, driven by the European will to put an end to the policies of the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan towards the countries of the continent.
In this context, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian condemned, on Thursday, the statements of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, calling them “violent and characterized by hatred”, referring to the possibility of imposing sanctions on Ankara.
In a press release, the French minister said: “Now there are violent and hateful statements made by President Erdogan regularly, and they are unacceptable. France is not the only target, there is full European solidarity on the issue and we strongly want Turkey abandon this logic. “
It comes a day after Turkey threatened a “firm response” towards the dissolution by French authorities of the Turkish nationalist group “Gray Wolves”, describing the French decision as a “provocation”.
And Paris had earlier announced the dissolution of the Turkish extremist group “Gray Wolves”, two days after the French government imposed the ban. French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanan said in a tweet carrying the announcement of the group’s dissolution that the latter “incites discrimination and hatred and is involved in acts of violence.”
French media accuse the movement of having a strong connection with the Turkish president, as he is linked to the Turkish Nationalist Movement Party, allied with Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party.
Turkish-French relations have been in a state of tension since the beginning of this year, which has turned into a war of words since the outbreak of the gas exploration crisis in the eastern Mediterranean. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had called for a boycott of French products, accusing his French counterpart of leading a “hate campaign” against Islam and questioning his “mental health”.
European problem
Turkey’s problems are not limited to France, but include the European Union. Yesterday, the European Union condemned Turkey’s decision to extend the mission of the gas exploration ship in an area in dispute with Greece in the eastern Mediterranean.
Yesterday, the French news agency quoted European diplomats as saying that “a package of economic sanctions prepared by the European Commission is ready to be revitalized and can cause great damage to Turkey, especially in the tourism and transport sectors.”
For his part, Hamza Meddeb, a researcher specializing in political economy at the Carnegie Center, believes that European countries “this time are serious in their approach to punish Turkey.”
In an interview with Sky News Arabia, he added: “ Erdogan’s call to boycott France has been seen in many European capitals as a declaration of boycott, and many have called for the abolition of the customs union system between Turkey and the European Union. . Of course, Greece and Cyprus are at the forefront of countries calling for the imposition of sanctions on Turkey, and this is understandable in light of the ongoing conflict in the Mediterranean over gas and the demarcation of maritime borders. “
“There is a feeling in European capitals that Turkey has played the immigration card, and today it is trying to play the trade card to embarrass Europeans.”
For his part, the French Secretary of State for European Affairs, Clément Bonn, announced on Wednesday that his country would support the imposition of “sanctions” at the European level against Turkey, at a time when tension between the European Union and Ankara for various files.
He said in the French Senate: “We will support European measures that reflect a strong reaction, including the instrument of possible sanctions.”
Double penalties
The European sanctions to be discussed at the December European summit against Turkey relate to many outstanding issues between the two sides, the most important of which is the question of eastern gas exploration and Turkey’s exploration activities in the waters of Cyprus and Greece. In addition to relations with France, the war in Libya and the Armenian-Azeri conflict.
Since last August, the European Commission has launched a package of alleged sanctions that can be activated against Turkey, including: “ships or other assets used in exploration operations and prohibition of the use of European Union ports and equipment.”
In addition to imposing restrictions on financial and economic infrastructure related to gas exploration activities in the offshore areas of Greece and Cyprus, in addition to extensive sanctions against entire sectors of the Turkish economy, which could include the banking sector.
The European Union already extended sanctions to Turkish drilling activities in the eastern Mediterranean on Friday.
Hamzah Meddeb says: “Certainly the European Union is not going to cancel the customs union, but at the same time it will push to tighten the screws on Turkish products, especially iron and steel.”
In the end, after the gas, immigration and military intervention in the European neighborhood, “trade today seems to be a scene of conflict between Turkey and the European countries, and this is evidence of the deterioration of the relationship between the two parties”, according to al-Muddab, who indicated that Erdogan is playing to develop the feeling that Turkey is a target. Skip the economic difficulties in Turkey and build a home front against an imaginary enemy. “
“But the countries of the European Union consider that this goes beyond the red lines related to European security.”
Turkey faces threats from the United States to impose sanctions over its Russian S-400 missile system.
Last December, a US Senate committee passed legislation to impose sanctions on Turkey for its offensive in northern Syria and its purchase of the Russian S-400 missile system.
“Regardless of who controls the Senate, the pressure to impose sanctions on Turkey will multiply due to the S-400 deal and its aggressive policies in Libya, the eastern Mediterranean and the southern Caucasus,” said the former US ambassador to Turkey, Eric Edelman. “They will become unstoppable at some point.”
“As is the case with the Anti-American Adversaries through Sanctions Act, it will face a majority that opposes the right of veto, and if Joe Biden wins the election, he is likely to be less averse to imposing sanctions,” he added in published statements by the Turkish newspaper Ahwal.
Sky News
[ad_2]
