All war presupposes human weakness and seeks to exploit it.

Sending refugees to Greece and prosecuting Europeans is merely the continuation of policy by other means. Erdogan shows himself to be a good pupil of Clausewitz. Ankara’s objectives are the integration with the EU and gaining financial support from the EU on Turkish terms, as we explained in April Gefira #3. To this end Turkey heavily relies on its nationals in Europe to heighten tension with Berlin and the European Commission, carrying it almost too far. European citizens see that Erdogan is getting the upper-hand over the weak European politicians: Merkel’s popularity is now plummeting across the continent, so that the chancellor may even be forced to step down as a result of Erdogan’s political maneuvering.

Dutch journalist detained in Turkey slams house burglary as ‘intimidation’
A Dutch journalist of Turkish descent who was briefly detained by Turkish police after tweeting critical remarks about the country’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said her Amsterdam apartment has been broken into, denouncing what she described as “intimidation.” Source DailyHurryjet

Hunderte Strafanzeigen gegen Jan Böhmermann
Bei der Staatsanwaltschaft in Mainz sind viele hundert Strafanzeigen gegen den ZDF-Moderator Jan Böhmermann eingegangen.
So wurden wiederholt ausländische Journalisten durch türkische Behörden an der Einreise gehindert bzw. vorübergehend festgesetzt. Erst vergangene Woche wurde ARD-Korrespondent Volker Schwenck am Flughafen von Istanbul stundenlang festgesetzt. BILD-Fotograf Giorgos Moutafis wurde am Samstag nach seiner Landung in Istanbul ohne Begründung am Weiterflug gehindert und ausgewiesen. Source Bild

Turkey to meet visa liberalization criteria by Monday, EU minister says
Legislation to meet European Union criteria on lifting of visas is expected to be complete on Monday, Turkey’s Minister of European Union Affairs said. Source DailySabah

Visa roadblock threatens EU-Turkey migration deal
Member of European Parliament and diplomats say that if Turkey fails to meet all of the required criteria — which include guarantees to protect civil liberties — they will exercise their legislative power to deny visa liberalization Source Politico