Turkey is feverishly preparing to welcome NATO leaders on July 7 and 8. Against this backdrop, restrictions and repression against journalists and the opposition are not abating.
Turkey is set to host the NATO summit in July, and the capital Ankara is already preparing for the event. Roads are being renovated and building facades are being beautified, reports ARD correspondent Benjamin Weber.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan opens a second airport in the capital just in time for the meeting and sees it as a symbol of his country's growing influence. Unlike Esenboga Airport, the new Ankara airport is located much closer to the city center. It is the one that should welcome foreign leaders visiting Turkey, ARD points out.
However, locals are not enthusiastic. One man said in a survey on Turkish television: "We don't need a second airport. The current one is completely sufficient for the population of Ankara." Another added: "I doubt the city needed something like this. We all know why this airport was built: for the NATO summit in early July."
Waiting for Trump
The presidential palace in Ankara, Erdogan's official residence, will be surrounded by a large security zone. 70,000 security personnel will be on standby when Emmanuel Macron, Giorgia Meloni, Friedrich Merz arrive. Donald Trump will also be there. "He called me and said that the US should be present. "I'm only going out of respect for President Erdogan," the US president said.
The participation of the US president, who is very critical of NATO, is a success for the host Erdogan even before the event, ARD commented.
In Ankara, European countries want to strengthen the defense alliance and increase support for Ukraine. Trump complains about the lack of support in the war with Iran and demands an increase in military spending. Will the US protect its allies in the event of an attack? This question has become the elephant in the room.
Turkey enjoys particular attention. Its military industry is necessary for Europe's defense power, but its ability to mediate conflicts could also prove valuable to NATO. Huseyin Dirioz, a former Turkish ambassador to NATO, told ARD: "The great success of this summit would be overcoming the tension between the US and Europe and reaffirming the solidarity of the allies."
Silencing journalists and the opposition
However, the background against which the summit will take place is problematic. More than 200 people have recently been arrested in Ankara on terrorism charges. According to media reports, trade unionists, lawyers and political activists are among them. The human rights organization "Human Rights Watch" criticizes the Turkish government for wanting to silence critical voices in this way.
On Thursday, it became known that NATO had denied accreditation to the summit to many journalists from Turkey. Erol Yonderoglu from "Reporters Without Borders" explains that this mainly affects independent and government-critical editorial offices such as T24 and "Sözcü": "The exclusion of such a large part of the media landscape is completely unacceptable", he commented.
A city-wide ban on gatherings has been in effect in Ankara since Sunday. It will be in effect for two weeks. Small opposition parties, however, plan to protest against the government's actions during the NATO summit.