Human Rights Watch urged Merz to denounce Turkey’s crackdown on opposition figures, including the arrest of Istanbul’s mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called on Europe to strengthen its strategic partnership with Turkey to confront new global challenges.
He made these remarks during his first official visit to Ankara, where Turkey continues to mediate conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
Standing beside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Merz spoke only days after Turkey and the United Kingdom sealed a multi-billion-euro deal to sell 20 Eurofighter Typhoon jets.
Germany, part of the manufacturing consortium, recently removed its long-standing objection to exporting the aircraft to Turkey.
Building a Shared Defense Vision
Reports indicate that Germany supports Turkey’s participation in the Security Action for Europe (SAFE), a €150 billion initiative aimed at boosting Europe’s military strength.
SAFE invites non-EU nations, including Turkey, to join defense projects.
Greece strongly opposes Turkey’s involvement, insisting Ankara must first abandon its threat of war over maritime border disputes between the two NATO members.
Merz avoided discussing SAFE directly but emphasized the value of cooperation.
He said Germany and Turkey must better use their relationship’s potential in the coming months and years.
He argued that global power politics now demand expanded strategic partnerships.
Merz declared that Europe cannot avoid building a deeper partnership with Turkey.
Tensions Over Rights and Gaza
Tensions arose at the joint press conference over human rights and the war in Gaza.
Human Rights Watch again pressed Merz to confront Turkey’s repression of opposition voices and İmamoğlu’s imprisonment.
İmamoğlu, a prominent rival to Erdoğan, remains in pretrial detention on corruption charges he denies, while new espionage charges have emerged.
Merz avoided naming him but criticized Turkey’s recent decisions as falling short of European democratic and legal standards.
Erdoğan defended Turkey’s judiciary, asserting that authorities must act against anyone who violates the law, regardless of position.
On Gaza, Merz reaffirmed Germany’s historic support for Israel since its founding after the Holocaust but added that this does not mean accepting every Israeli policy uncritically.
He said Israel exercised its right to self-defense and claimed Hamas could have ended the war by freeing hostages and surrendering weapons.
Erdoğan accused Israel of committing “starvation and genocide” and condemned Germany for ignoring Israel’s military advantage.
He asked pointedly, “As Germany, can’t you see this?”
