Turkish opposition head denounces Dutch ban on minister

By Ugur Islamoglu and Baris Gundogan

ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkey's opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Saturday denounced Dutch government's barring a Turkish minister's plane, calling it "wrong".

"Those who support democracy cannot do things like this," Kemal Kilicdaroglu told reporters in Istanbul.

Earlier, the Netherlands canceled Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's flight permit on grounds of "security" and "public safety", Dutch Foreign Ministry announced in a statement.

The announcement came just hours after Cavusoglu said Turkey would impose “severe sanctions” on the Netherlands if attempts were made to cancel his planned meeting in the European country.

The minister was scheduled to address the Turkish community in the Dutch city of Rotterdam later Saturday.

"You cannot call yourself a 'democrat' and cancel the flight permit of a minister of the Republic of Turkey. We definitely do not think it is right. It is wrong," Kilicdaroglu said.

The opposition leader also voiced support for Cavusoglu about Turkey's sanctions against the Netherlands.

In addition, CHP Deputy Chairman Tekin Bingol said Turkey did not deserve such behaviors, referring to the Dutch government's move.

"Every thought should be expressed freely. Especially, such approaches which can turn to an international crisis cannot be accepted," Bingol added.

Several events planned for senior ministers from the Justice and Development (AK) Party in Germany have also been canceled in recent days due to what Berlin described as security grounds.