German Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier is on a state visit to Turkey, his first since the start of his term in office in 2017. The timing of the visit is no coincidence. It also commemorates the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries a hundred years ago.
Back in 1924, both the Turkish Republic and the German Empire had had a profound new beginning: both states had been on the losing side as allies after the First World War, and as a result had to cede territories – Turkey even lost a major empire – and both had abolished the monarchy . In Germany, the Weimar Republic took the place of the Empire.
But the internal change in Turkey was much greater: the country’s founder, Kemal Atatürk, wanted a secular, European-oriented Turkey. Caliphate and Sharia from the Ottoman Empire were replaced by Western legal systems.
The two predecessor states, the Ottoman Empire and the German Empire, had also maintained close diplomatic, military and trade relations. Now, a few months after the founding of the Turkish Republic in 1923, diplomatic ties were established there again and a friendship treaty was concluded.
State founder Kemal Atatürk wanted a modern, secular, Western-oriented TurkeyImage: Ann Ronan/Picture Library/imago images
But Berlin didn’t take it particularly seriously at the time, says historian and Turkey expert Rasim Marz: “Despite the resumption in 1924, the crisis-ridden Weimar Republic did not attach great political importance to diplomatic relations with the young Republic of Turkey until the 1930s,” writes he told DW. But “Germany’s high reputation in Türkiye remained unaffected.”
Türkiye: refuge for those persecuted by the Nazi regime
A chapter in German-Turkish relations that is often forgotten today was the exile of several hundred persecuted Germans during the Nazi era in Turkey, which was then neutral in terms of foreign policy.
“Turkey under Atatürk became a refuge for many persecuted academics. The Turkish Republic needed highly qualified people,” said Rasim Marz. The SPD politician and later Berlin mayor Ernst Reuter was among them, the economist and politician Fritz Baade, the composer Paul Hindemith and many others. They “were significantly involved in the further expansion of the state based on the European model”.
Turkish migrants in Germany
To date, probably no decision has had such a lasting impact on relations as the conclusion of a recruitment agreement for Turkish workers in the Federal Republic of Germany in 1961. According to the Foreign Office, around 876,000 people came from Turkey as a result. For example, they worked in mining, in the auto industry, and opened shops. Many brought their families with them and stayed forever. Today around three million people with Turkish roots live in Germany.
For a long time they were called “guest workers,” but most of them stayed permanently. Today around three million people in Germany have a Turkish migration backgroundImage: bertram/dpa/picture-alliance
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier honored their achievement right at the beginning of his visit to Turkey, at a historic location: many of the recruited Turks boarded the trains bound for Germany at Istanbul’s Sirkeci train station. “They helped build our country, they made it strong and they belong at the heart of our society,” said Steinmeier.
Deterioration of relations under Erdogan
Since Recep Tayyip Erdogan became President of Turkey, relations have increasingly deteriorated. Erdogan took tough action against political opponents, especially after an attempted coup in 2016. The federal government has repeatedly denounced the human rights situation in Turkey; The German ambassador was summoned again and again. It is a sign of the tensions that before the current visit, no German Federal President had been to Turkey for ten years.
Thick air: Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock openly addressed the human rights situation in Turkey at a meeting with her Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Cavusoglu in July 2022Image: Annette Riedl/dpa/picture alliance
Erdogan is also transforming the country in terms of foreign policy – and, in the opinion of Rasim Marz, is hitting a nerve with his compatriots: “Turkey under President Erdogan has been striving for two decades to lead the country among the leading nations in the world, both academically and politically The country’s elite, among military officers or business tycoons, whether from the government camp or the opposition – the vision of a political and military great power Turkey in the 21st century has solidified in society.”
For Erdogan, Hamas is a liberation organization
Erdogan’s stance on the Islamist Hamas in the Gaza Strip is particularly explosive for German politics. Erdogan defended Hamas’ October 7 massacre of Israelis and described Hamas as a liberation organization. On the other hand, Israel’s security – despite all German criticism of Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip – is official German “reason of state”. As if to reinforce the differences, Erdogan met with Hamas foreign chief Ismail Haniya shortly before Steinmeier’s arrival.
Hamas foreign chief Ismail Hanija (l.) goes in and out of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Berlin Hamas is a terrorist organizationImage: Murat Cetinmuhurdar/TUR Presidency/Anadolu/picture alliance
During his visit to Istanbul, the Federal President was also confronted with demonstrators who protested against Germany’s Israel policy.
The EU accession negotiations with Turkey have been frozen
German-Turkish relations have long been embedded in Turkey’s relations with the entire EU. Turkey has been a candidate for EU membership since 2005, previously supported by SPD Chancellor Gerhard Schröder. But in fact, the accession negotiations have long been on hold, also a consequence of Erdogan’s tough domestic and foreign policy course.
Chancellor Angela Merkel had been relatively cautious towards Turkey, also because she urgently needed Ankara during the 2015/16 refugee crisis. The politicians in the incumbent SPD-led federal government under Chancellor Olaf Scholz are more clear about the problems, not least Green Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.
Erdogan (center) at the celebrations for the 100th year of the founding of the state in 2023 in front of the Ataturk Mausoleum in AnkaraImage: Adem Altan/AFP
This is not going down well with the Turkish leadership, says Rasim Marz: “Germany has lost considerable influence in Ankara after the Angela Merkel era. The dissonances between the two countries, which became apparent during Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock’s last visit (in July 2022). that came to light are profound in different subject areas.” Historian and Turkey expert Rasim Marz believes that a revival of the EU accession negotiations “is currently not foreseeable”.
A new beginning?
The Federal Government’s hope lies in Turkish civil society and the Turkish opposition. Erdogan’s AKP party suffered a defeat in the local elections a few weeks ago. Instead, the country’s largest opposition party, the CHP, triumphed. Their great hope, also as a possible future president, is Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier with the opposition politician and Istanbul mayor Ekrem ImamogluImage: Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa/picture alliance
The Federal President met him before Erdogan during his visit. A sign that Berlin is hoping for political change and a further new beginning in Turkish-German relations.