Dutch PM lost Turkey's friendship: Erdogan

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has shamed the EU saying there is a "clash between the cross and the crescent".

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan says Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has lost the friendship of Ankara after a diplomatic row between the NATO allies over a ban on Turkish ministers speaking in the Netherlands.

Erdogan's comments, at a rally in the northwestern province of Sakarya on Thursday, came a day after Rutte fought off the challenge of anti-Islam and anti-EU rival Geert Wilders in an election victory hailed across much of Europe.

Erdogan also slammed the European Union for its ruling allowing companies to ban staff from wearing Islamic headscarves under certain conditions.

"Shame on the EU. Down with your European principles, values and justice... They started a clash between the cross and the crescent, there is no other explanation," he said.


Share
1 min read

Published

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world