Will Erdoğan choose a “Fascist”?!

Even though the government does not refuse a single request from the US-NATO, just as it did with the membership of Finland and Sweden, there is a new test ahead for Turkey-NATO relations.

The name of the test is who will be the new NATO Secretary General to replace Stoltenberg, whose term expires on October 1.

As of today, three candidates are being discussed. One is Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, and the others are Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas.

According to claims; The US, UK, France, and Germany want Rutte. Turkey, on the other hand, has not yet made a decision!..

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with Rutte at the Nuclear Energy Summit held in Brussels two weeks ago.

Afterward, on the very night of March 31, Rutte spoke with Erdoğan by phone and requested support for the NATO Secretary General position. Following this meeting, it was announced which criteria Turkey would follow in determining the new secretary general.

Our requests or expectations are: receiving convincing commitments regarding the fight against terrorism and adherence to the Alliance's core values, and according to the pro-government media, “increasing defense cooperation among NATO member countries,” or according to foreign media, the lifting of “restrictions on intra-alliance arms sales,” i.e., the embargo!..

Foreign Minister Fidan also stated after the NATO Defense Ministers meeting he attended recently that Turkey's expectations had been conveyed to Rutte, and “I believe that clarification on this matter will come very soon. I think our President will also announce his decision.” he said.

Regarding the NATO Defense Ministers meeting, Fidan stated; “that member countries should provide full and unconditional support to Turkey in the fight against terrorism, and that some NATO member countries, as in Syria, should not cooperate with terrorist organizations, even under a ‘temporary’ mask.” he explained that he brought up Turkey's EU membership and also exchanged views with his counterparts regarding Gaza.

WHAT HAPPENED WITH RUTTE

From top to bottom, it seems all roads lead to Rutte. So, let us briefly recall what happened with this individual.

Before the constitutional referendum regarding the transition to the presidential system in 2017, AKP ministers wanted to campaign in the Netherlands, but they were not permitted to do so. While the landing permit for the plane of the then-Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu was canceled, the Minister of Family and Social Policies, Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya, was prevented from entering the Turkish Consulate in Rotterdam. While Kaya's bodyguards were detained, the Dutch police attempted to forcibly remove Kaya from her vehicle using a tow truck with a crane. Turkish citizens who came to support Kaya were met with harsh intervention by mounted police and police dogs. Ultimately, Minister Kaya was forced to go to Germany in another vehicle under police escort.

Following these events, diplomatic relations between the two countries were downgraded to the level of chargé d'affaires, and Erdoğan reacted as follows:

"Hey Rutte, you may have become the leading party, but know that you have lost a friend like Turkey. You said, 'We can have dinner with Prime Minister Yıldırım after the election'; we don't have such a prime minister, forget about that. You have lost."

“Undoubtedly, we will begin our measures against them after April 16. They are so timid and cowardly; they are remnants of the Nazis, they are fascists.”

While Rutte responded to these words by saying, “I understand the anger of the Turks, but the Nazi comparison crossed the line,” Erdoğan also brought up the possibility of canceling the refugee agreement made with the EU.

The second crisis occurred before the 2018 elections. When the Netherlands again refused to allow Erdoğan and AKP ministers to conduct propaganda in their country, on the grounds that it would “pose a threat to public order”; the then-EU Minister Ömer Çelik this “hypocrisy against democracy itself” while describing it as the pro-government newspaper Sabah, “The Netherlands, which embraces the PKK, says ‘do not come for the election’” ran the headline.

The cause of the 2020 crisis was Erdoğan's filing a criminal complaint against Geert Wilders, the leader of the far-right Party for Freedom in the Netherlands, on the grounds that he had insulted him. Rutte delivered this message:

“My message is very simple; in the Netherlands, we consider freedom of expression to be the most important value, and that includes cartoons of politicians.”

Fortunately, as with many other countries, these subsequent crises with the Netherlands were also forgotten, relations gradually returned to normal, and Rutte came to Turkey in March 2022, exactly 8 years later, and met with Erdoğan. The main agenda of the meeting was the war in Ukraine and sanctions against Russia, and Rutte's statement that “Turkey is very important for the defense of the eastern flank” expression said a lot.

HOW COMPATIBLE IS IT WITH OUR EXPECTATIONS?

We have stated above Turkey's priority expectations from both the new Secretary General and NATO; the fight against terrorism and the lifting of arms embargoes...

So, where does Rutte's Netherlands stand on these issues?

The separatist terrorist organization The PYD, the Syrian branch of the PKK, opened its 7th representative office in the Netherlands, following those in Russia, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, and Germany. Spokespersons for the Dutch government also attended the opening in 2016.

Then-US President Trump's, “I will destroy your economy” Following the 2019 Operation Peace Spring, during which he issued that threat, the Netherlands—that is, Rutte—also joined the caravan of countries imposing an arms embargo on our country. The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs called for a halt to the operations and announced that they had suspended the export of military products to Turkey.

In 2020, the Netherlands also accepted the EU's proposal to impose an arms embargo on Turkey, citing not only the Syria operation but also “illegal initiatives” in Karabakh, Libya, and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Two years later, the Rutte government relatively eased the embargo in question “on the condition that it is indisputably proven that the weapons in question will not be used in Syria.” (!) Last July, restrictions on arms shipments were lifted, ostensibly for the sake of European defense cooperation, but in reality, for the NATO membership of Sweden and Finland.

In summary, this is the track record of the prospective NATO Secretary General Rutte and NATO member the Netherlands regarding our struggle against the PKK and its affiliates.

Let us also note Rutte’s perspective on the Gaza massacre, which is a “red line” for the government.

Shortly after Israel’s attacks began, Rutte was one of those who rushed to Netanyahu’s side to show support and said, “I respect what Israel is doing to restore its security.” Netanyahu, for his part, described the Netherlands as a “very great friend” of Israel. he emphasized.

ONCE BIDEN WANTS IT

If anyone asks, “Can Erdoğan approve of someone like this becoming NATO Secretary General?” let us remind them of this: In 2009, when the name of the then-Prime Minister of Denmark, Rasmussen, came up, Erdoğan said,

“I cannot explain your NATO Secretary Generalship to my people.” The reason was that Denmark allowed the broadcast of the PKK's Roj TV, published disgusting cartoons against Prophet Muhammad, and Rasmussen considered all of this to be “freedom of expression.” he said.

The reason; Denmark's permission for the broadcast of the PKK's Roj TV, the publication of disgusting cartoons against Prophet Muhammad, and Rasmussen's labeling of all these as “freedom of expression.”

However, then-US President Obama intervened, and Rasmussen took the Secretary General seat without even offering an apology to Muslims.

Now that Biden wants Rutte, is there any possibility or chance of saying “no”?!