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Unilateral actions against Turkey by the United States will undermine American interests and force Turkey to look for other friends and allies.

By Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Mr. Erdogan is the president of Turkey.

ANKARA, Turkey For the past six decades, Turkey and the United States have been strategic partners and NATO allies. Our two countries stood shoulder to shoulder against common challenges during the Cold War and in its aftermath.

Over the years, Turkey rushed to Americas help whenever necessary. Our military servicemen and servicewomen shed blood together in Korea. In 1962, the Kennedy administration was able to get the Soviets to remove missiles from Cuba by removing Jupiter missiles from Italy and Turkey. In the wake of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, when Washington counted on its friends and allies to strike back against evil, we sent our troops to Afghanistan to help accomplish the NATO mission there.

Yet the United States has repeatedly and consistently failed to understand and respect the Turkish peoples concerns. And in recent years, our partnership has been tested by disagreements. Unfortunately, our efforts to reverse this dangerous trend proved futile. Unless the United States starts respecting Turkeys sovereignty and proves that it understands the dangers that our nation faces, our partnership could be in jeopardy.

On July 15, 2016, Turkey came under attack by members of a shadowy group led by Fethullah Gulen, who leads his organization, officially described by my government as Fethullah Terrorist Organization, from a compound in rural Pennsylvania. The Gulenists tried to stage a bloody coup against my government. On that night, millions of ordinary citizens rushed to the streets out of a sense of patriotism, similar to what the American people undoubtedly experienced after Pearl Harbor and the Sept. 11 attacks.

Two hundred and fifty one innocent people, including Erol Olcok, my longtime campaign manager and dear friend, and his son, Abdullah Tayyip Olcok, paid the ultimate price for our nations freedom. Had the death squad, which came after me and my family, been successful, I would have joined them.

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The Turkish people expected the United States to unequivocally condemn the attack and express solidarity with Turkeys elected leadership. It did not. The United States reaction was far from satisfactory. Instead of siding with Turkish democracy, United States officials cautiously called for stability and peace and continuity within Turkey. To make matters worse, there has been no progress regarding Turkeys request for the extradition of Fethullah Gulen under a bilateral treaty.

Another source of frustration relates to the partnership between the United States and the P.Y.D./Y.P.G., the Syrian branch of the P.K.K., an armed group that is responsible for the deaths of thousands of Turkish citizens since 1984 and that is designated a terrorist group by the United States. According to estimates by the Turkish authorities, Washington used 5,000 trucks and 2,000 cargo planes to deliver weapons to the P.Y.D./Y.P.G in recent years.

My government has repeatedly shared our concerns with American officials about their decision to train and equip the P.K.K.s allies in Syria. Unfortunately, our words have fallen on deaf ears, and American weapons ended up being used to target civilians and members of our security forces in Syria, Iraq and Turkey.

In recent weeks, the United States has taken a series of steps to escalate tensions with Turkey, citing the arrest by the Turkish police of an American citizen, Andrew Brunson, on charges of aiding a terrorist organization. Instead of respecting the judicial process, as I urged President Trump to do in our many meetings and conversations, the United States issued blatant threats against a friendly nation and proceeded to impose sanctions on several members of my cabinet. This decision was unacceptable, irrational and ultimately detrimental to our longstanding friendship.

To convey that Turkey does not respond to threats, we retaliated by sanctioning multiple American officials. Moving forward, we will abide by the same principle: Attempting to force my government to intervene in the judicial process is not in line with our Constitution or our shared democratic values.

Turkey has established time and again that it will take care of its own business if the United States refuses to listen. In the 1970s, the Turkish government stepped in to prevent massacres of ethnic Turks by the Greek Cypriots despite Washingtons objections. More recently, Washingtons failure to grasp the seriousness of our concerns regarding national security threats emanating from Northern Syria resulted in two military incursions that cut off the so-called Islamic States access to NATOs borders and removed the Y.P.G. militants from the city of Afrin. As in those cases, we will take necessary steps to protect our national interests.

At a time when evil continues to lurk around the world, unilateral actions against Turkey by the United States, our ally of decades, will only serve to undermine American interests and security. Before it is too late, Washington must give up the misguided notion that our relationship can be asymmetrical and come to terms with the fact that Turkey has alternatives. Failure to reverse this trend of unilateralism and disrespect will require us to start looking for new friends and allies.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the president of Turkey.

An earlier version of this article misstated details on the placement of Jupiter missiles in Turkey. In 1962, the Kennedy administration negotiated the removal of Soviet missiles from Cuba by removing Jupiter missiles already based in Italy and Turkey. It is not true that during the Cuban missile crisis, Turkey agreed to the initial placement of the Jupiter missiles.

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Opinion | Erdogan: How Turkey Sees the Crisis With the U.S ...

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - President Tayyip Erdogan denied on Saturday that Turkey is in a currency crisis, dismissing a plunge in the lira as fluctuations which have nothing to do with economic fundamentals.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan talks to media in the Black Sea city of Ordu, Turkey August 11, 2018. Cem Oksuz/Presidential Palace/Handout via REUTERS

Speaking after U.S. President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on Turkish steel and aluminum imports, Erdogan described Fridays 18 percent fall in the lira to a record low as the missiles of an economic war waged against Turkey.

Erdogan said those who plotted against Turkey in a failed coup attempt in July 2016 were now trying to target the country through its economy, and pledged to fight back. He did not name any countries.

Those who cant compete with us on the ground have brought online fictional currency plots that have nothing to with the realities of our country, production and real economy, Erdogan told a provincial meeting of his AK Party in the Black Sea coastal town of Rize.

The country is neither crumbling, nor being destroyed or bankrupt or in a crisis, he said, and added that the way out of the currency plot was to boost production and minimize interest rates.

The Turkish lira has lost about 40 percent this year alone, largely over worries about Erdogans influence over the economy, his repeated calls for lower interest rates in the face of high inflation and deteriorating ties with the United States.

The two governments have been at odds over a wide range of topics - from diverging interests in Syria, to Turkeys ambition to buy Russian defense systems, and the case of evangelical pastor Andrew Brunson, who is on trial in Turkey on terrorism charges.

Erdogan also appeared to allude to a deadline for handing over Brunson, although he did not name the United States as having set any such deadline or say precisely when it might have expired. (They are) threatening, saying you will send (him) until 6 pm ... This is not some random country. This is Turkey, he said.

A Turkish delegation visited Washington for talks this week but left with no signs of a breakthrough.

After almost 20 months in a Turkish jail, Brunson was moved to house arrest in July by a court. Since then Trump and his vice president Mike Pence have repeatedly called for his release while Ankara said the decision was up to the courts.

Washington in response sanctioned two Turkish ministers and Trump on Friday announced it was doubling the tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Turkey, saying relations with Ankara were not good at this time.

An important emerging market, Turkey borders Iran, Iraq and Syria and has been mostly pro-Western for decades. Financial upheaval risks further destabilizing an already volatile region.

A meeting on Friday unveiling a new economic approach by Turkeys finance minister Berat Albayrak, Erdogans son-in-law, did little to offer support for the free-falling lira as investors sought concrete steps such as an interest rate increase to restore confidence.

I am asking you. What possible reason could there be behind the lira which was at 2.8 against dollar in July 15, 2016 to slide below 6 yesterday? During this period, Turkey has set records in its exports, production and employment, Erdogan said.

He repeated a long-standing plan to shift to trading in national currencies and said Turkey was preparing for such a step with Russia, China and Ukraine.

He also repeated his call to Turks to sell their dollar and euro savings to shore up the lira. If there are dollars under your pillow, take these out... Immediately give these to the banks and convert to Turkish lira and by doing this, we fight this war of independence and the future, he said.

He also said it was a pity that Washington chose Brunson over Turkey, its partner in NATO, and in an opinion piece in the New York Times, he warned the United States that Ankara had other alternatives as allies.

Washington must give up the misguided notion that our relationship can be asymmetrical, he said in the opinion piece.

Turkey, home to the Incirlik air base which is used by U.S. forces in the Middle East, has been a NATO member since the 1950s. It is host to a critical part of the Western alliances missile defense system against Iran.

In a separate opinion piece in the pro-government newspaper Daily Sabah, Erdogans spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said Turkeys efforts to solve the crisis with diplomatic methods had been dismissed by the Trump administration, warning that the U.S. runs the risk of losing Turkey as an ally.

The entire Turkish public is against U.S. policies that disregard Turkeys legitimate security demands. Threats, sanctions and bullying against Turkey will not work, he said.

Editing by Clelia Oziel and David Stamp

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Erdogan says U.S. 'wrong' to threaten Turkey after Trump ...

Steps taken by the United States about pastor Andrew Brunson were not suitable for a strategic partner and were disrespectful to Turkey, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday.

Washington this week imposed sanctions on two Turkish ministers over the case of Andrew Brunson, a US pastor on trial in Turkey accused of backing terrorism.

Speaking to the womens wing of his AK Party, Erdogan said he gave orders for assets in Turkey belonging to the US interior and justice ministers to be frozen if they have any. FULL STORY

On Wednesday, the US Treasury Department on hit Turkeys justice and interior ministers with sanctions over the case of an American pastor being tried on terror charges.

We believe hes a victim of unfair and unjust attention by the government of Turkey, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told journalists, referring to Andrew Brunson, an American pastor at the center of a bitter diplomatic spat between NATO allies.

Brunson, who led a Protestant church in the Aegean city of Izmir, was placed under house arrest last week after nearly two years in jail. READ MORE

Last Update: Saturday, 4 August 2018 KSA 16:19 - GMT 13:19

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Erdogan: US actions regarding pastor Brunson disrespectful to ...

On the surface, it appeared to be a heros welcome for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan when he touched down in the breakaway Turkish republic in the north of Cyprus earlier this month, as Turkish flags and a gun salute greeted his arrival. Away from the cameras however, there is a very different reality, as locals grow ever more opposed to what they see as the systematic overthrow of their secular values.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974 following nationalistic waves in both the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities which culminated in partition. A Greek military coup saw Turkey respond with an invasion of a third of the island which is today the de facto state that houses the Turkish Cypriot minority.

While ethnically Turkish and culturally Muslim, most Turkish Cypriots are secular, with a way of life far more in tune with that of their Greek Cypriot counterparts than with their supposed motherland, due to centuries of coexistence before the conflict.

In contrast, as Erdogans power grows stronger, so does his push to enforce more conservative religious values on the Turkish Cypriots.

Government spending at religious schools in Turkey will double by the end of the year to over 6.5 billion lira ($1.35 billion), a quarter of the total upper state schools budget.

The overhaul of the education system which is in full flow in Turkey has reached the shores of Cyprus. Mosques now outnumber schools, while religious and nationalistic narratives dominate classrooms over Western ideas. The removal of evolution theory from science classes highlights the magnitude of the change.

Erdogans recent visit coincided with the opening of a $13 million Ottoman-style mosque on the outskirts of Nicosia. But instead of a grand reception, protesters gathered to display their disapproval. Far from an isolated display, dissent towards what they see as attempts to alter the cultural landscape of their homeland have become common.

Some 1,500 people gathered to decry the creation of an Islamic-focused committee in charge of sport and cultural events in 2016.

In January, Turkish Cypriots protested after nationalists attacked the offices of local newspaper Afrika for likening Turkeys offensive against Afrin to the invasion of Cyprus. Erdogan had encouraged nationalists in the north to "give the necessary response to the article, which was perceived as a clear incitation of violence.

When hundreds of Turkish Cypriots shouted "Ankara, get your hand off our shores," back in 2011, protesting against new austerity measures imposed on them by Turkey, Erdogan responded in a way that many feel typifies the view he has of Turkish Cypriots: "It is outrageous that those who are fed by our country are behaving in that way.

Defiance is a symbol of their spirit but the systematic exportation of mainland Turks to the island, which has left the near 130,000 Turkish Cypriots a minority in their own community, leaves their future in a precarious state.

Turkey has always had the major say in Turkish Cypriot affairs but the iron-fisted approach since the attempted coup against Erdogan in 2016 has seen that power escalate and spill over into northern Cyprus.

Barbaros Sansal, a celebrity Turkish fashion designer, was expelled from the breakaway state after he posted a tweet critical of Turkey on New Years Eve 2016. Upon arrival in Istanbul, he was met by an angry mob on the stairs of the plane where he was viciously attacked, before being imprisoned for two months.

I have witnessed a lot of corruption, unlawful things in the north, he said. But the real concern for Sansal is the change of the islands values that comes with illegal settlement: Turkish Cypriots are the same as Greek Cypriots, most are secular and polite. But the Turkish (settlers) who arrive are mainly nationalists and Islamists.

At the height of intercommunal tensions leading up to the islands division in 1974, there was a real concern that the Turkish Cypriots would be driven out of existence by Greek nationalists. Forty-four years on from the Turkish invasion, which was seen as the Turkish Cypriots salvation, it is this very brand of nationalism that is their biggest existential threat, only this time it comes from their supposed ally.

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These Turks are risking everything to resist Erdogan

While details remain sparse on a possible state visit by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the grand reception that the Turkish leader could receive has upset several German opposition politicians.

A spokeswoman with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier's office confirmed to DW that an invitation had been extended to the Turkish president some time ago, but said that both Ankara and Berlin were still working on fixing a date.

"Planning for the visit is currently in the beginning stages," deputy presidential spokeswoman Esther Uleer said.

Not only the date, but the classification of Erdogan's visit remainup in the air. The trip could take the form of anything from a toned-down working visit to a pomp-and-circumstance-filled state visit including military honors and a state dinner.

Erdogan 'should stay home'

But some members of Germany's opposition parties feel that any sort of visit would send wrong signals.

Erdogan "is no normal president in a democracy," cautioned Cem zdemir, an MP with the environmentalist Greens.

The Turkish leader has transformed his country "into a kind of Turkmenistan or Azerbaijan with censorship, despotism, nepotism and autocracy" and should be received as such during any visit to Germany, zdemir told the newspapers of the Funke media group.

He urged the German government "to make it clear that any attempt to build Turkish nationalist-fundamentalist parallel structures here will not be tolerated."

March 31, 2016: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan filed charges against German comedian and satirist Jan Bhmermann over his "defamatory poem" about the Turkish leader. German prosecutors eventually dropped the charges on October 4, 2016, but the case sparked a diplomatic row between Berlin and Ankara.

June 2, 2016: The resolution passed almost unanimously. In response, Turkey recalled its ambassador in Berlin and Germany's Turkish community held protests in several German cities. Turkey had repeatedly criticized the use of the term genocide to describe the Ottoman-era Armenian killings, arguing that the number of deaths had been inflated, and that Turkish Muslims also perished in the violence.

July 15, 2016: A faction of the Turkish military tried to overthrow President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, but ultimately failed. Ankara accused Berlin of not taking a clear stand against the coup attempt or not doing anything about exiled preacher Fethullah Gulen's organization, who Erdogan blames for orchestrating the failed coup.

Immediately following the attempted coup, Turkish authorities purged the army and judiciary, detaining thousands of people. The purge expanded to include civil servants, university officials and teachers. German politicians criticize the detentions. Turkish diplomats, academics and military members fled the country and applied for asylum in Germany.

Erdogan's post-coup crackdown has also been condemned by Kurdish protesters at several mass demonstrations in the west German city of Cologne. Often the rallies have called for the release of Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which Turkey considers to be a terror group. Ankara has accused Berlin of not doing enough to stop PKK activities.

February 14, 2017: Deniz Ycel, a correspondent for the German newspaper "Die Welt" was taken into custody in Turkey. Other German nationals, including journalist Mesale Tolu, have also been detained in Turkey for what Berlin says are "political reasons." Turkey has accused some of them of allegedly supporting terrorist organizations.

February 14, 2017: Deniz Ycel, a correspondent for the "Welt" newspaper, was taken into custody in Turkey. Other German nationals, including journalist Mesale Tolu and human rights activist Peter Steudtner were detained in Turkey for what Berlin dubbed "political reasons." Turkey accused them of supporting terrorist organizations. Tolu and Steudtner have since been released pending trial.

March 2017: A number of German localities blocked Turkish ministers from holding rallies in their districts ahead of an April referendum in Turkey to enhance President Erdogan's powers. The Turkish leader then accused Germany of using "Nazi tactics" against Turkish citizens in Germany and visiting Turkish lawmakers. German leaders were not amused by the jibe, saying Erdogan had gone too far.

March 30, 2017: Germany accused Turkey of spying on hundreds of suspected Gulen supporters as well as over 200 associations and schools linked to the Gulen movement in Germany. Turkish asylum-seekers have since accused officials working in Germany's immigration authority (BAMF) of passing on their information to media outlets with ties to the Turkish government.

August 18, 2017: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan slammed three of Germany's main political parties as "enemies of Turkey" and told Turks living in Germany not to vote for them in September's general election. He singled out Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), the Social Democrats (SPD), and the Greens. Merkel said Erdogan was "meddling" in Germany's election.

September 4, 2017: German Chancellor Angela Merkel said during an election debate that she didn't think Turkey should become a member of the European Union and said she would speak with other EU leaders about ending Ankara's accession talks. In October, she backed a move to cut Turkey's pre-accession EU funds.

January 20, 2018: The Turkish military and their Syrian rebel allies launched "Operation Olive Branch" against the Kurdish-held enclave of Afrin in northern Syria. The move was criticized by German politicians and prompted large protests by Kurdish communities in Germany.

February 16, 2018: Turkey ordered the release of German-Turkish journalist Deniz Ycel after he'd been held for over a year without charge. According to Turkish state media, Ycel was released on bail from pre-trial detention. Prosecutors asked for an 18-year jail sentence for Ycel on charges of "terror propaganda" and incitement.

Author: Rebecca Staudenmaier

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) called for the visit to not take place at all, with AfD parliamentary group leader Alice Weidel saying Erdogan "should stay home."

"The government must certainly not allow Erdogan to hold another propaganda show in Berlin," Weidel wrote in a post on Facebook, adding that such an event would attempt to "incite citizens with Turkish backgrounds and residents of our country against Germany and German society."

German government open to talks

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's government said on Monday that it was "of course" open to discussions with Erdogan and emphasized Turkey's role as a "close and important partner."

Politicians within Germany's governing coalition also viewed the state visit more positively, although they were not without their caveats.

"I've never been convinced by the argument that it would be better not to talk at all with difficult partners,"Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, a member of the Social Democrats (SPD), told the dailyBild.

Members of Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) and their Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), viewed the visit as an opportunity to address outstanding issues.

"We've already rolled out the red carpet for many other heads of state with blood on their hands. If we want to speak only with democratic leaders, then Germany will soon be very alone on the world stage," Elmar Brok, a CDU politician and the chair of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs, told Bild.

Jrgen Hardt, the foreign policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, said he "welcomed" the news of Erdogan's possible visit. Still, he noted that it was important for Berlin to address outstanding issues with Germany, such as the detention of German citizens in Turkey.

"During this visit, [...]the German government should not miss any opportunity to also discuss critical issues between Germany and Turkey," Hardt said in a statement.

Ongoing tensions

Erdogan and his government have been heavily criticized by Germany and other Western allies overthe state of civil rights in Turkey and its leaders' growing authoritarianism.

In the wake of a failed 2016 coup, the Turkish government carried out a sweeping crackdown that has seen numerous Erdogan critics detained including German nationals.

Although Die Welt correspondent Deniz Ycel and human rights activist Peter Steudtner have since been released, several German nationals are still being held in detention.

Erdogan has also been vocal in his criticism of Germany, particularly after Berlin banned Turkish politicians from campaigning in Germany during a constitutional referendum last year. Erdogan also backed football star Mesut zil's recent decision to leave the German national team over accusations of racism. zil had also sparked controversy for meeting with Erdogan in May in London.

Despite tensions, the NATO allies are also dependent on one another.

Germany and other European Union countries have relied on Turkey to slow the number of refugee and migrant arrivals in the bloc as part of a 2015 deal. Turkey, on the other hand, is looking to boost its fragile economy amid high inflation.

Should the visit come to fruition, it would be Erdogan's first official trip to Germany since 2014, as well as his first since he assumed office as president.

After years of free market reforms, Turkey's transition slowly begins to reverse. Islamist Abdullah Gul's candidacy as president in 2007 marks a clear shift away from secularist policies, and strains relations between the ruling AKP and the military. However, with broad support from both conservative Muslims and liberals, the AKP wins the parliamentary elections and Gul is elected president.

Then-Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan tables a constitutional reform increasing parliamentary control of the judiciary and army, effectively allowing the government to pick judges and senior military officials. The amendment, which is combined with measures also aimed at protecting child rights and the strengthening the right to appeal, passed by a wide margin in a public referendum.

Pent-up anger directed by young people at Erdogan, Gul and the Islamist-rooted AKP hits a boiling point in May 2013. The violent police breakup of a small sit-in aimed at protecting Istanbul's Gezi Park spurs one of the fiercest anti-government protests in years. Eleven people are killed and more than 8,000 injured, before the demonstrations eventually peter out a month later.

A fragile ceasefire deal between the Turkish government and the Kurdish rebel PKK group breaks under the weight of tensions aggravated by the war in Syria. Military forces resume operations in the mostly Kurdish southeast of Turkey. In early 2016, the Kurdistan Freedom Hawks (TAK) a breakaway PKK faction claim responsibility for two bombings in Ankara, each killing 38 people.

A military coup attempt against the government shakes Turkey to its core and briefly turns the country into a war zone. Some 260 civilians die in overnight clashes with the army across five major cities. Erdogan, however, rallies supporters and the following morning rebel soldiers are ambushed by thousands of civilians on the Bosporus Bridge. The troops eventually drop their guns and surrender.

In the aftermath of the failed coup, Erdogan announces a state of emergency, leading to arrests of tens of thousands of suspected coup sympathizers and political opponents. Among those detained are military and judiciary officials and elected representatives from the pro-Kurdish HDP party. The purge is later expanded to include civil servants, university officials and teachers.

As part of Erdogan's crackdown against supposed "terrorist sympathizers," Turkey becomes one of the world's leading jailers of journalists, according to Reporters Without Borders. The government shuts down around 110 media outlets in the year following the coup and imprisons more than 100 journalists, including German-Turkish correspondent Deniz Ycel.

With a referendum on expanding Erdogan's presidential powers set for April 2016, AKP officials look to galvanize support among Turks living in Europe, particularly in Germany and the Netherlands. However, the Netherlands forbids Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu from landing in the country, while Germany opts to cancel two rallies. Erdogan accuses both countries of Nazi-style repression.

Erdogan narrowly wins the referendum vote expanding his power. As a result, Turkey's parliamentary system is abolished in favor of a strong executive presidency. Erdogan is also allowed to remain in power potentially until 2029. However, international election monitors claim that opposition voices were muzzled and that media coverage was dominated by figures from the "yes" campaign.

Erdogan secures a new five-year term and sweeping new executive powers after winning landmark elections on June 24. His AKP and their nationalist allies also win a majority in parliament. International observers criticize the vote, saying media coverage and emergency measures gave Erdogan and the AKP an "undue advantage" in the vote.

Author: David Martin

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German politicians wary of pending Erdogan state visit ...