NATO Split: Germany Wants to Withdraw Patriot Missiles From Turkey

Military expert of the German CSU party Florian Hahn called for the withdrawal of German Patriot missiles from Turkey due to attacks carried out by the government forces against the Kurds, DWN reported.

The expert believes that Germany and Turkey have less and less in common due to attacks of the Turkish forces against the Kurds in northern Iraq.

This signifies the first split inside NATO, which earlier decided to lend military support for its member, Turkey, the German newspaper wrote.

Taking into account activities of the Turkish forces against Kurds in northern Iraq, Florian Hahn called for withdrawal of the German soldiers from Turkey. He also said that NATO Patriot air defense systems are no longer necessary for the protection of Turkey and their deployment has been serving as a "symbolic sign of our allegiance." 

"Given the current developments, we need to thoroughly rethink this deployment," the expert said.

The Bundeswehr has stationed one of its Patriot defense systems about 100 kilometers from the Syrian border. It was designed to protect the country against potential attacks from its neighbor.

Hahn criticized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his denunciation of the peace process with the Kurds.

"With his attacks against the Kurds, Erdogan has once again demonstrated that Turkey and Germany are pursuing less and less common goals," the CSU politician said.

On Monday, NATO decided to support Turkey in its fight against Islamic State. However, Turkey has used the chaos to launch missions against the Kurds in northern Iraq and alleged Kurdish fighters on Turkish soil, DWN reported.