Turkey and Germany urgently need to calm down

After a week of a war of words between Turkish and German senior officials, it was good to hear Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım and Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci's constructive messages on the Ankara-Berlin ties. Both men assured German investors in Turkey that there were no terror-related investigations, as suggested by some media outlets, and that they were under the protection of Turkish laws. 

Yıldırım, in particular, recalled the special ties between the two countries and emphasized that a crisis in bilateral relations would not serve either party. This understanding voiced by Yıldırım should be embraced by other Turkish and German politicians as well. 

As Yıldırım outlined in a statement on July 21, it would be no exaggeration if one categorized the relationship between Turkey and Germany as unique and as one of the most special in international relations. 

The number of Turks living in Germany exceeded 3 million in the last half a century since the first Turkish immigrant worker arrived in the country to help the re-construction and economic rehabilitation of the German state after the devastating World War II.

Germany is Turkey's largest economic and trade partner and German investments in Turkey have been helping the growth of this country since decades. The bonds between the two countries make this relationship irreplaceable and unavoidable. 

However, all these common points and mutual interests seem to be forgotten by both countries' officials especially in the recent year. As mentioned in this column so many times, one of the most important reasons of this continued tension is the lack of empathy and solidarity shown by European countries in the aftermath of the July 15, 2016, coup attempt. 

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