Germany starts shipping arms to Turkey, could be used against Kurds
The German Green Party also urged a weapons ban for Turkey.
By BENJAMIN WEINTHALTurkish army vehicles and military personnel are stationed near the Turkish-Syrian border in Sanliurfa province, Turkey, October 12, 2019(photo credit: MURAD SEZER/REUTERS)
Germany’s government re-authorized weapons deliveries to the Islamic Turkish government of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan after Turkey’s invasion of northern Syria, according to German media reports on Friday.Germany’s Economic Ministry told the MP Sevim Dagdelen (Die Linke) that armament exports were permitted after Turkey invaded Syria in October. The value of the exports is €3.9m. Dagdelen said the authorization of weapons to Turkey is “completely irresponsible,” and demanded a full ban of military sells to Ankara.The German Green Party also urged a weapons ban for Turkey.The export of weapons was allowed following the sixth week of Turkey’s military operation to oust Syrian Kurds. Erdogan claims the Syrian Kurds along its border are an existential threat to its security because they are aligned with the PKK, a Turkish militant organization that seeks an independent Kurdish state.Four shipments of military-related goods were green-lighted to Turkey. However, the shipments did not include war weapons, according to the economics ministry.In a statement obtained by the German Press Agency (DPA), the economics ministry said the “approved armaments cannot come into action in Syria.”It is unclear what type of military-related merchandise was permitted. However, the following categories of armaments were named: Naval sector in the amount of €2.69m., €400,000 worth of electronic goods for military purposes, and handguns or small weapons in the amount of €2556.Germany initially pulled the plug on most weapons deliveries to NATO member Turkey, following its entry into Syria to combat the YPG Kurdish force that helped oust the Islamic State in the region.In October, German Chancellor Angela Merkel termed Turkey’s invasion “a humanitarian drama with large geo-political consequences,” adding that “the German federal government will, under the current conditions, not deliver weapons to the Turkey.”There is history to Germany military goods not designed to reach conflicts against Syrian civilians, but ending up in the Syrian war theater. In 2018, the German company Krempel Group sold material to Iranian businesses in Tehran. The Krempel material was found in the remains of Iranian-produced chemical rockets that gassed Syrian civilians in January and February in the same year. Germany’s government did not object to the sale of Krempel material.
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