Consulate-General of Germany in Istanbul closed today 'for security reasons'

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The Consulate-General of Germany in İstanbul made an announcement stating that the consulate "will be closed today on February 1 for security reasons."

The Consulate-Generals of Great Britain and the Netherlands have also been closed "for security reasons."

The Netherlands Consulate-General in İstanbul was temporarily closed starting on January 30, 2023.

The statement made by the Consulate-General of the Netherlands said, "The last demonstrations in Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands where Qur'an was burnt may raise anti-West sentiments and cause demonstrations and protests. The threat of attacks on Western targets, diplomatic missions, and places of worship is increasing, most significantly in İstanbul."

The British Consulate-General in Istanbul has also been temporarily closed to visits.

The Consulate-Generals of the USA, Germany, and France had made announcements late at night on January 28, 2023, warning their citizens in Türkiye of the "risk of terror attacks" which could follow the Qur'an burning actions in Sweden and Denmark. 

NATO bids of Sweden and Finland

Finland and Sweden formally applied to join NATO on May 18, in a decision spurred by Russia's war on Ukraine.

However, Türkiye, a NATO member for over 70 years, voiced objections to the membership bids, criticizing the two countries for tolerating and even supporting "terrorist groups."

The three countries signed a trilateral memorandum of understanding on June 28 at the NATO summit in Madrid.

In September, Sweden lifted restrictions on arms sales to Türkiye, which was among Ankara's demands in order to approve its NATO bid.

Qur'an burning and tearing demonstrations

On January 21, Rasmus Paludan, the leader of a far-left political party in Danmark and a citizen of Sweden and Danmark burned a copy of Qur'an in a protest in front of the Embassy of Türkiye in Stockholm.

Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin condemned the demo, calling it a "hate crime".

The Swedish government also criticized the protest.

"Sweden has a far-reaching freedom of expression, but it does not imply that the Swedish government, or myself, support the opinions expressed," Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said.

Ankara did not find the reactions from the Swedish government satisfactory and the Defence Minister of Türkiye Hulusi Akar announced that he canceled a visit from his counterpart in Sweden.

On January 22, the Europeans Against the Islamization of the West (Pegida) leader Edwin Wagensveld tore up a Qur'an in front of the House of Representatives in the Netherlands. 

The ambassador of the Netherlands was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 

"Different approach towards Finland"

Türkiye may have a different approach towards Finland's NATO membership, which would "shock" Sweden, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on January 29.

The reasons for such a difference would be Sweden's reluctance to extradite "terror" suspects to Türkiye, as agreed in a trilateral memorandum in June, and the recent burning of the Quran outside of Türkiye's embassy in Stockholm, Erdoğan stated. (SD/PE)