German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle will pay a one-day working visit to İstanbul on Thursday, Turkish officials said on Tuesday.
Both German and Turkish officials avoided commenting on the content of Westerwelle’s meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Ahmet Davutoğlu. Yet, in addition to regional developments in the Middle East and North Africa, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s claims concerning German foundations operating in Turkey are likely to be high on the agenda of the meeting.
In early October, Erdoğan said he was disturbed by the fact that some German foundations are aiding the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which he said is one of the reasons for the probe into the Kurdish Communities Union (KCK), the political arm of the PKK. German foundations that have branches in Turkey and Germany’s sustainable development agency, GIZ, denied Erdoğan’s claims.
Meanwhile, Westerwelle’s visit to İstanbul will coincide with the opening of an artists’ academy in the summer residence of the German ambassador in the İstanbul suburb of Tarabya on Thursday. Cornelia Pieper, minister of state in the German Foreign Ministry and responsible for cultural policy, will take part in the ceremony. Next year the house will host the first scholarship holders. Each year up to 14 German artists will get stipends for six months so that they get to learn about the arts scene in Turkey. The German federal parliament decided to establish the academy in 2009 but controversies about the concept have delayed the project.
It was not yet clear whether Westerwelle will be able to attend the inauguration ceremony when Today’s Zaman contacted German Embassy officials on Thursday.
via Ahmet Davutoğlu to host Germany’s Westerwelle tomorrow.