Danish Ambassador Hoppe: We don't blame Turkey for Agca
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Şubat 16, 2006 10:04
Danish Ambassador to Ankara, Christian Hoppe, has said that he finds it wrong that all of Denmark should have to suffer for the actions of one newspaper. "We don't blame all of Turkey for the doings of Mehmet Ali Agce," said Hoppe, referring to the terrorist convicted of shooting Pope John Paul II and a top journalist in Turkey.
Hoppe's tenure in Ankara has been marked by a number of international incidents involving Denmark and Turkey; late last year there was the abrupt departure by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan from a joint press conference being held in Copenhagen with Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen. Erdogan departed the premises in protest over the presence of Kurdish Roj TV reporters in the press salon.
Danish caricatures also marking Hoppe's time in Ankara
The latest controversy to affect Hoppe's presence in Ankara is of course the Danish caricature crisis, of which Hoppe noted, "Let's find a peaceful solution to all this. I don't like it when these types of problems are on the front pages of newspaper." Said Hoppe further, "Danish people are very tolerant and peace-loving. And in Turkey, unlike in other countries, all the protests against the caricatures were peaceful. I see no reason why Danish tourists couldn't come to Turkey. The newspaper which published the caricatures openly apologized. The government of Denmark said it didn't support the caricatures, and was saddened by their publishing. We hope this can all end soon."
Danish caricatures also marking Hoppe's time in Ankara
The latest controversy to affect Hoppe's presence in Ankara is of course the Danish caricature crisis, of which Hoppe noted, "Let's find a peaceful solution to all this. I don't like it when these types of problems are on the front pages of newspaper." Said Hoppe further, "Danish people are very tolerant and peace-loving. And in Turkey, unlike in other countries, all the protests against the caricatures were peaceful. I see no reason why Danish tourists couldn't come to Turkey. The newspaper which published the caricatures openly apologized. The government of Denmark said it didn't support the caricatures, and was saddened by their publishing. We hope this can all end soon."