Turkey summons German envoy over ‘anti-Erdogan’ TV song

Ankara — Turkey summoned Germany’s ambassador to protest a two-minute song lampooning President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that was broadcast on German television, a diplomatic source told AFP on Tuesday. “We summoned the ambassador last week to communicate our protest about the broadcast that we condemned,” the source told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity. “We demanded that the broadcast is removed from the air.” German regional television NDR on March 17 broadcast the sardonic song. EU heavyweight Germany sees Turkey as main partner in tackling a wave of refugees landing at Europe’s borders, with Chancellor Angela Merkel saying Brussels wants Ankara’s help on the issue. German news weekly Der Spiegel said this month it had to withdraw its Istanbul correspondent. Several diplomats from EU member states, including the German envoy, last week attended the trial of two journalists facing espionage charges, drawing the ire of Erdogan who accused the diplomats of overstepping their powers.