by Savas Genc*, Today's Zaman | The reports German media published suggesting Germany was
wiretapping Turkey were important; but the details on these reports are
also crucial because they offer some insights into the course of
bilateral relations between Turkey and Germany. Recent reports indicated
that American intelligence was wiretapping German Chancellor Merkel.
This raised issues in bilateral relations between Washington and Berlin.
The allegations claiming Germany also wiretapped Turkey caused similar
problems and questions.Did American intelligence leak this information to take revenge on Berlin? Or did the German state deliberately leak this information to deliver a message to Ankara? This is a possibility given that Germany might have dismissed the allegations and sorted this out with the Turkish authorities behind closed doors; they could have even apologized for it. However, neither Merkel nor German bureaucrats denied the allegations. They even specifically commented on it. Speaking to the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper, German authorities did not offer an apology to Turkey and further justified what they had done by offering their reasons. Noting that Turkey cannot be compared to Britain, France or other advanced democracies, German government officials argued that wiretapping was an inevitable action for their own domestic security.
The case is pretty obvious. Germany, the largest trade partner of Turkey, has had Turkey under surveillance since 2009 despite the fact that they are partners. A NATO member's acknowledgment that they were wiretapping another NATO ally also sends the message that they were aware of what their target was doing. We do not know anything about what information Germany acquired and on what issues it was trying to warn Turkey, but we can say that this is a huge crisis and an unusual move.
Former chief of the German Federal Intelligence Agency (BND). Hans-Georg Wieck, told the press that the BND would not make a decision to wiretap Turkey on its own and that the wiretapping could only be performed upon instruction from the federal government. Merkel, on the other hand, stressed that she would not provide detailed information on the matter, adding that the relevant information could be disclosed to the BND inspection commission alone. Apparently, Turkey will have to be satisfied with only the knowledge that it was wiretapped. It will never be able to learn what sort of information Berlin holds.
Why was Ankara's reaction weak?
Initial reports in the German press stressed that Ankara was wiretapped because of the suspicions that Turkey extended support to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and enabled the transfer of militants. In addition, the risks posed by the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which had been organized within Germany, and other matters should also be considered. ISIL is a terror organization that became influential in 2013. However, Turkey has been wiretapped since 2009. Wiretapping Ankara to better understand what the PKK will do is not a good justification, and Turkey's approach to the PKK is pretty transparent. It was already possible for Germany to acquire the information it needed on this matter from Turkey.German opposition staged a strong reaction, even stronger than the reaction by the Turkish government, noting that wiretapping Ankara was a mind-blowing move. Even some members of the ruling party reacted negatively to this incident, noting that friends do not wiretap each other; it is truly surprising to see how Ankara is relying on a pretty low-profile diplomatic scheme regarding this scandal. It appears that Ankara believes that sharing certain crucial information with the public is not understandable. The German press, on the other hand, instead of questioning the wiretapping, praised what the government did. Noting that all developed Western countries are collecting intelligence in Turkey, German media outlets argued that it would be illogical for Germany to avoid wiretapping Ankara. The overall conviction that it was not reasonable to categorize Turkey as a friendly nation like the US and EU member states actually summarizes the general view vis-à-vis Turkey.
In the final analysis, Germany had wiretapped Turkey for many years, and we learned this from the German press. If the German government had denied this allegation, this would not have been covered in Turkey. Turkey has a long way to go in guarding its confidential information and collecting intelligence. The release of the Ergenekon and Balyoz suspects in the aftermath of Dec. 17 and subsequent statements suggesting that a plot was staged against the military may be considered within the context of the intelligence battles. The radical change in the position of the government in these cases, which assumed the role of prosecution in those investigations, raises a question as to whether it was taken hostage by leaked intelligence. The National Intelligence Agency (MİT), which has been empowered by the recently adopted law, will exercise these powers to wiretap Berlin and take revenge for Ankara by sharing this information with the public instead of posting them on Twitter. Or am I wrong?
*Fatih University, Department of International Relations
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