Dutch apology not enough, actions will have consequences: Turkish FM

METZ

An apology from the Netherlands regarding its refusal to permit a Turkish minister to enter Ankara’s Rotterdam consulate will not be enough to normalize relations, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said March 12, adding that the country’s actions would have consequences.

The minister said Ankara demanded a written apology from the Netherlands, even while adding that an apology would not be sufficient and that Turkey would take further action.

He also reiterated that the Dutch ambassador to Turkey, Cornelis van Rij, could not re-enter Turkey.

“To begin with, this will have a response. Apologizing is not enough. We have begun to give a response and said the ambassador should not come to the country and he cannot. We will take steps and then the Netherlands will apologize. Otherwise, we will continue to take these steps,” Çavuşoğlu told reporters in Metz, France.

Çavuşoğlu also said he was waiting for criticism from the EU regarding an incident he described as “fascistic.”