Turkey warns that the tourism sector in the country could bear the brunt of the closure of consulates of the Netherlands, Germany and Great Britain, among others. The country lashes out and accuses, among other things, our country of ‘psychological warfare’.
The Netherlands closed the consulate on Monday in Istanbul, because there is an increased threat. The reason for this is the tearing up of a Koran during a demonstration in The Hague. The Dutch ambassador has already been called to account in Ankara for this. The threat also focuses on Sweden, among others, where a Quran was burned.
There is also an increased threat of an attack against Western targets, diplomatic representations and places of worship, especially in Istanbul. Individual Dutch tourists would not be in immediate danger, although it is not recommended to go to large demonstrations.
‘Conspiracy’
Turkey sees the closure of Western consulates as a plot to kill the Turkish tourism sector. “On the very day we presented our goal to attract 60 million tourists, at a time when we get 50.5 million, they are about to start a new psychological war against Turkey,” said the minister.
The Dutch travel advice for Turkey is still yellow, which means that there are safety risks, but that in principle you can travel normally. The consulate in Istanbul can still be reached online and some tasks are taken over by the embassy in Ankara.
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