Just as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan fulminates against the United States again, blaming Washington for his country’s worsening economic troubles, a small controversy has erupted in the Netherlands over Turkish influence in the country.
It came to light earlier this week that Turkey is planning to fund special Dutch schools to teach residents of Turkish origin about their heritage. The idea has sparked alarm among some Dutch politicians and their followers on both the left and the right, who worry about what, exactly, Erdogan’s government intends to teach in these schools, which would operate on weekends across the Netherlands.
The debate is yet another sign of the increasingly contentious relationship between Ankara and its European neighbors and NATO allies, one that is being shaped by multiple forces, from diplomatic and security concerns to social and corporate pressures.
Frida Ghitis
Political and economic news with a Baltic accent 