Berlin — Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government has backed the withdrawal of German troops from Turkey, escalating a feud between two Nato allies and major trading partners. Germany will seek talks with the US and other allies in the coalition fighting Islamic State in Syria and Iraq to make the transition from Incirlik to a base in Jordan as smooth as possible, Germany Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen told reporters in Berlin. The move was backed by Merkel’s cabinet at its weekly meeting on Wednesday, she said. "Re-deploying to Jordan will take time," von der Leyen said. The move includes an outage of two to three months for Tornado surveillance planes that Germany pledged to the US-led coalition after the Paris terror attacks in 2015, she said. While the immediate dispute centres on Turkey’s refusal to allow visits to Incirlik by German lawmakers, it’s only the latest flashpoint in a relationship that’s deteriorated since President Recep Tayyip Erdogan consolidated power after...
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