Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Aug. 12 that tension with Europe was due to European domestic politics and relations with Berlin would improve after Germany's parliamentary election in September.
"Criticism from Europe is about their internal politics," Erdoğan said in a speech in the western city of Isparta that was broadcast live on television.
"France and Austria did this before, we see that Germany follows the same strategy. I believe that this situation will improve after elections," he said, referring to the Sept. 24 polls where Chancellor Angela Merkel is running for a fourth term.
German-Turkish relations have steadily deteriorated in recent years.
