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Turkey will never be a member of the European Union as long as it is governed by its current president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel has said.

His remarks in an interview with newspaper Bild are likely to further inflame relations between the two Natoallies after Mr Erdogan urged German Turks to boycott Germany's main parties in next month's general election.

"It is clear that in this state, Turkey will never become a member of the EU," Mr Gabriel said.

"It's not because we don't want them but because the Turkish government and Erdogan are moving fast away from everything that Europe stands for."

EU leaders have been critical of Mr Erdogan's crackdown on opponents before and after a failed military coup against him in July last year.

Accession talks have ground to a virtual halt though Turkey remains a candidate for membership.

Turkey's Western allies fear that sweeping new powers Mr Erdogan won in a tightly fought referendum in April are pushing Turkey away from democratic values.

Turkey's president Recep Erdogan wins referendum to greatly expand powers

Mr Erdogan says both the crackdown and the increased presidential powers are needed to help tackle serious challenges to Turkey's security both at home and beyond its borders.

At a highpoint in tensions earlier this year, Mr Erdogan angered Germany, home to threemillion Turks, about half of whom can vote in the election on 24 September,by accusing German authorities of Nazi-like behaviour.

Relations between the two countries have also been strained by Turkey's arrest of a Turkish-German journalist and a German human rights activist.

Reuters

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Germany warns Turkey it will never join EU while Erdogan remains in charge - The Independent

JAKARTA

A Facebook page set up by a group of Indonesian supporters of Turkeys president has reached more than 250,000 followers.

The Sahabat Erdogan, or Friend of Erdogan, account was opened in 2014 by four fans of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

We opened this account in order to deliver straight information to Indonesia about Erdogan, fan Gibraltar Hilal said.

There has been some inaccurate news, forwarded by foreign news agencies, against Turkey and Erdogan in our country. We intend to prevent these.

On Thursday, the page had 253,149 followers and 249,472 likes. It carries photographs of the president and Turkish scenes as well as news articles about the country.

Turkey stands by Indonesia during all its hard times and bilateral relations date back to Ottoman era, Hilal added.

The most followed person on Facebook is Real Madrid footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, with more than 120 million followers. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has more than 95 million.

Reporting by Adem Salvarcioglu and Mahmut Atanur; Writing byAhmet Furkan Mercan

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Indonesian Facebook page for Erdogan reaches 250000 - Anadolu Agency

Israel is concerned about the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoans recent visit to Jordan where he met King Abdullah II.

Asaf Ghibour, an Israeli expert in Arab affairs, told NRG that Israeli officials do not wish to see Erdoan in Amman because of his recent attempts to establish ties with Iran.

Erdoans visit to Amman comes after he called on Arab countries to unite in order to protect Jerusalem, the holy city for Muslims.

Tension between Jordan and Israel has mounted over recent weeks after an Israeli official shot two Jordanians at the Israeli embassy. A petition signed by members of the Jordanian parliament called on the Israeli ambassador to be expelled from the country and has helped the Turkish-Jordanian rapprochement.

Read more: Israels anger with Turkey

Ghibour said that discussions between Erdoan and Abdullah II focused on tensions in the Middle East, including the crisis in Syria and the current situation in Jerusalem.

Prior to his departure from Ankara, Erdoan said that the Arab countries must work on establishing a united front to protect Jerusalem. His anti-Israel statements still colour his speeches and he often denounces Israeli policy in the holy city.

Ghibour stated that Erdoans visit to Jordan, which is the first since he became Turkish President, has a clear regional significance, especially as it coincided with Turkeys attempts to strengthen its relations with Iran.

He said that the Jordan and Turkey are concerned with what might happen in Syria in the coming days and how the two countries can protect their borders amidst the seven-year war.

Jordan and Turkey also share common concerns that relate to the successive economic crises the two countries have encountered because of the thousands of Syrian refugees that have sought refuge there. He pointed out that armed militias close to Daesh pose security risks to both countries.

An official ceremony held by Royal Jordanian Honor Guards due to President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogans arrival at Raghadan Palace in Amman, Jordan on 21 August, 2017 [Okan zer/Anadolu Agency]

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Erdogan's visit to Jordan stirs Israeli concerns - Middle East Monitor

Jordan's King Abdullah II walks with Turkey's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, left, during a welcome ceremony at the Husseiniya Palace in Amman on August 21, 2017. Pool photo via AP

Turkey'spresident on Monday made his first visit to Jordan in nine years as once strained relations have been overtaken by common interestssuch as resolving the Syrian conflict and safeguarding the Muslim holy sites in east Jerusalem.

Recep TayyipErdogan received a red-carpet welcome from King Abdullah and other high-ranking officials at theHusseiniya Palace in Amman before the two leaders held talks on a range of issues.

The royal court said King Abdullah and Mr Erdoganunderscored the need to continue co-ordination on areas of mutualconcernas well as boosteconomic ties and investments.

Turkeys ties with Jordan were particularly strained during the Arab Spring, when Mr Erdogan promotedhis Justice and Development Party (AKP) seen as an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood by Arab nations as a model of democratic Muslim rule.

Despite maintaining diplomatic, economic and cultural ties, the countriesdo not see eye to eye on several foreign policy issues, ranging fromAnkaras support for the Brotherhood and Hamas to its ties with Qatarand backing of hardline Islamist rebelsin Syria.

Turkey was also seen as doing little to hinder the flow of foreign fighters to ISIL in Syria but that changed two years ago when it agreed to allowAmerican warplanes to launch strikes against the extremists from its Incirlik airbase in southern Turkey.

Analysts say Mr Erdogan's visit also provides an opportunity for Turkey and Jordanto strengthen co-operation on the Syrian conflict as both countries share borders with Syria and host a large number of Syrian refugees.

Turkey isone of the guarantor states, alongside Russia and Iran,in the Astana peace talks that seek to bring an end to the hostilities in Syria, whileJordan is an observer.

The talks so far have resulted in an agreement on four de-escalation zones across the country, including one in southern Syria bordering Jordan.

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What brings Turkey and Jordan together is the common challenges, whether they are the civil war in Syria, situation in Iraq, Jerusalem and the Palestine issue, the refugee problem, said Murat Karagoz, Turkey's ambassador to Jordan. We need to consult and co-operate more and subsequently find common solutions.

Last month, when tensions escalated over new Israeli security measures at the Al Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem, of which Jordan is the custodian, Mr Erdogan condemned Israel and backed Jordan's protests.

Turkey also recognises and supportsJordans special role in protecting the holy sites in Jerusalem, Mr Karagoz said.

Mr Erdogans visit also coincides with the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

Jordan and Turkey are good friends, and have deep cultural and historical and brotherly ties, the Turkish ambassador said.

With a free-trade agreement in place since 2011, trade between the two countries rose to US$1 billion (Dh36.7bn) in 2014, before dipping slightly $835 million last year.

Fares Braizat, chief executive of the Amman-based research firm NamaStrategic Intelligence Solutions, said it was going to be "win-win for both countries" even though relations were not at their bestin recent years, particularly during the Arab Spring.

"Turkey is a strategic player in the region and Jordan plays a key role in regional stability. Therefore, it is important for both to co-operate on regional security since both share borders with Syria, said Mr Braizat.

As violence levels have dropped in Syria and Iraq, Turkey and Jordan are also positioned geographically to play in an important role in the reconstruction, but that cannot work without political reconciliation.

King Abdullah on Monday also held talks with visiting US secretary of defence James Mattisand discussed the Syrian conflict, the Iraqi war and the fight against ISIL, the Petra news agency reported.

Mr Mattis, who was on his first trip to Jordan since taking office,affirmed the US administration's willingness to increase itssupport to enable the kingdom to address challenges facing it, according to Petra.

Jordan is the first stop of a tour that will take Mr Mattis to Turkey and Ukraine this month, according to the Pentagon.

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Erdogan visits Jordan as Syria's neighbours rekindle relations - The National

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel said Berlin and the rest of Europe should back the "democratically minded" majority of Turks who did not support President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in a dramatic hardening of Germany's position towards Ankara.

His remarks, at a campaign event for his Social Democratic Party (SPD), come amid sharply deteriorating relations between the NATO allies, after Erdogan urged German Turks to boycott Germany's main parties in next month's election.

"More than half the country is democratically minded. They didn't support him," Gabriel said at the meeting in the western Saarland region, according to the foreign ministry.

"I believe that many in Turkey are counting on Europe and Germany supporting Turkish democracy and not looking on helplessly."

The remarks, coming after Erdogan told Gabriel to "know his place" and describing Germany's main parties as "enemies of Turkey", are likely to anger Turkey.

Erdogan accuses Germany of harbouring plotters behind last year's bloody coup attempt against Erdogan. Turkey has arrested 50,000 in a crackdown, including European-Turkish citizens. Western politicians say the dragnet is a pretext for Erdogan to rid himself of his opponents.

SANCTIONS CALL

Lawmakers from Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrat party and the Left party on the other end of the political spectrum urged the government to consider freezing the foreign assets of Erdogan and his inner circle.

"We need immediate and direct sanctions against Erdogan and his associates," said Sevim Dagdelen, foreign affairs spokesman for the Left party.

Home to some 3 million people of Turkish descent, Germany has traditionally had good relations with Turkey, which is also a major trade partner and tourist destination for German sun-seekers.

But, with parliamentary elections due on Sept. 24, current tensions have badly dented Turkey's image in Europe's largest economy.

In his remarks on Monday evening, Gabriel was cautious on sanctions, saying that Germany did not want inadvertently to hit "the small restaurant owners and waiters on the west coast."

The latest escalation in Ankara's war of words with Berlin was triggered by Turkey's use of an Interpol red notice to have Turkish-German writer Dogan Akhanli arrested in Spain. Accused of terrorism, Akhanli has been released but must remain in Spain while authorities assess Turkey's extradition request.

"I always thought I was safe in European countries and that the long hand of arbitrary arrogance couldn't reach me here," said the activist, who spent long periods in jail for left-wing activism before fleeing Turkey in 1991.

(Reporting By Thomas Escritt; Editing by Keith Weir)

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Germany's Gabriel hits back at Erdogan with call to back Turkish democracy - The Star Online