Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday the Manchester attack showed terrorism was a global problem and NATO allies should cooperate more closely in the fight against terrorism and share information swiftly to confront it.
Erdoğan, speaking in Ankara before flying to Brussels for a summit of NATO leaders and a meeting with European Union leaders.
Speaking two days after the attack at a Manchester concert, Turkish President said member states of the military alliance must acknowledge they faced the same threats.
"We still see the distinctions of 'my terrorist, your terrorist'. We have to move away from this."
"The antidote of terrorism is solidarity," Erdoğan said. "Instant sharing is obligatory in terms of intelligence. In this environment, it is compulsory that NATO is more active and it specifically has to offer more support to allies."
'EU MUST DECIDE ON TURKEY MEMBERSHIP'
Erdoğan will also have a potentially tense meeting in Brussels on Thursday with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and European Council President Donald Tusk.
He said ahead of crunch talks with the EU's leadership it was up to Brussels to decide if it wanted Turkey as a member of the bloc.
"The EU has no right to see Turkey as a beggar. We are going to tell them this. What are you still waiting for after 54 years?" Erdoğan said, repeating Ankara's frustration with the length of the membership process.
"I know that they are waiting for us to withdraw (the membership bid). But we say it's for you to decide. And if you decide we won't complicate your job," he added.
Some EU states oppose freezing accession talks with Ankara but Austria has backed halting the membership process.
This prompted Turkey to veto all NATO cooperation with neutral Austria, although the crisis was partially resolved with a deal on Tuesday.
"To keep it short, if you block, you get blocked (in return). It's really that simple," said Erdoğan.
Meanwhile, NATO ally Germany has warned it could relocate military personnel stationed at the Incirlik airbase close to Syria to another location, likely Jordan, due to the tensions.
But Erdoğan said Berlin had given no indication that it was pulling out its forces. "Whether this happens or not is not actually important. If they go then we will wave them goodbye," he said.
