Turkey, second largest military power in NATO withdrew its troops from a NATO drill in Norway on Friday when a poster was unveiled during the exercise depicting both President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the country’s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk as “enemies”, media reported.
“There can be no pact, no alliance like that,” Erdogan said during a meeting with members of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Ankara.
“40 Turkish troops would not return to the drill even if their names were removed from the poster”, Arab news quoting his as saying.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg quickly issued an official apology and stressed that “the incidents were the result of an individual’s actions and do not reflect the views of NATO. Turkey is a valued NATO ally, which makes important contributions to Allied security.”
