Media: Germany gave Ankara two weeks to resolve the Incirlik military base conflict
The German government has set a two week deadline for Ankara to resolve the conflict over the access of Bundestag deputies to the Incirlik NATO base in Turkey, as reported by Spiegel Online news website. If the matter is not resolved, Germany will withdraw its tanker aircraft and Tornado fighters from the base.
According to Spiegel, the federal government intends to withdraw the planes from the Incirlik only after holding talks with the Turkish authorities. Neither the German Foreign Ministry nor the Ministry of Defense nor the office of the Federal Chancellor is optimistic that contacts with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will lead to finding a solution to the problem.
A high level meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Erdoğan during the NATO summit on May 25 did not clarify this issue.
Around 260 German soldiers are stationed at the Turkish Incirlik Air Base. They provide support for air strikes against the bases of the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq by carrying out reconnaissance from the air and refueling the aircraft.
The conflict involving the Incirlik base arose in the middle of May when Ankara refused to grant an entry permission to the delegation of the German Bundestag Defense Committee, which was supposed to visit Incirlik. This step was taken by the Turkish authorities after Berlin granted asylum to military from Turkey.