German former chancellor Gerhard Schröder intervened directly with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to arrange the release of a jailed German activist, Berlin said on Oct. 26, according to Der Spiegel.
The report came after a court in İstanbul on Wednesday ordered the release of on bail of eight activists, including Amnesty International Turkey director, and German citizens Deniz Yücel, Meşale Tolu and Peter Steudtner, pending a verdict in their trial on terrorism charges.
Germany’s Social Democratic Party member and ex-Chancellor Schröder visited President Erdoğan following the request of German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel with the approval of Chancellor Angela Merkel. Gabriel asked Schröder to carry out a "secret" visit to Erdoğan so as to ensure the release of German detainees in Turkey, the report says.
Erdoğan and Schröder met and reached an agreement in İstanbul, deciding on the cooperation of Turkish and German foreign ministries for the resolution of the detainee crisis between the two countries. Meanwhile, the German government argued that the recent releases of German detainees came after Erdoğan’s direct intervention in the Turkish jurisdiction, Der Spiegel added.
"I am very grateful to Gerhard Schröder for his mediation," German FM Gabriel said, "which is the first sign of relaxation because the Turkish government has fulfilled all the commitments, and we must continue to release the other detainees."
The German media sources emphasise that Merkel has monitored the process from the very beginning, and Schröder did not act individually but was fully authorised by the German government to carry out the talks with Erdoğan. Some other claim that Schröder was intentionally assigned because "he is the most credible German politician" according to Erdoğan.
