The Turkish Interior Ministry said on Tuesday that German Chancellor Angela Merkel's remarks about Turkey's cooperation with Interpol were "unacceptable," adding that Germany's protection of a criminal charged with murder is contrary to mutual agreements.
A statement released by the ministry said Erdoğan Akhanlı, the suspect warranted by Interpol on Turkey's request, is responsible for killing a businessman during an armed robbery along with two PKK terrorists in 1984, saying it is a serious non-political crime. Turkey issued an international request for his arrest in 2013.
Akhanlı was arrested on Saturday in Spain, however, he was released shortly after Merkel pressed the country not to extradite the suspect to Turkey amid rising tension between the two countries.
The statement said Merkel's claims that Turkey is abusing the international system were unacceptable and Turkey followed the normal procedure while requesting an arrest warrant for Akhanlı.
It further said that Interpol's failure to comply with its own rules harms its credibility and objectivity.
Tensions between Ankara and Berlin have increased as Turkish politicians blame Germany for turning a blind eye to activities within its borders of groups which Turkey considers to be terrorist organizations, including the PKK, which is listed among outlawed groups by the U.S. and the EU, as well as the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ).
Meanwhile, German politicians have criticized Ankara for the detention of a German national as part of anti-terrorism investigations and operations. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other German politicians recently said that the EU customs union agreement should not be updated with Turkey, to which Turkish officials responded by accusing Berlin of using the customs deal as a political tool against Turkey and dictating Turkish-EU ties for Germany's short-term political interests.
