President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan does not necessarily need the approval of the German government to address Turkish citizens in the Turkish consulate general in Berlin, according to the embassy spokesperson.
"An approval from the German government is not needed for an appearance of the President in a Turkish consulate general," embassy spokesperson Refik Soğukoğlu told the German daily Reinischen Post on Saturday, adding that it would be Erdoğan's call to give the address.
Whether Erdoğan will address Turks in Germany is yet unclear, as there is no planned appearance so far.
German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said Thursday that the country would reject President Erdoğan's request to address Turkish citizens while attending the G20 summit in Germany next week.
"We don't have the police forces available to ensure security, given the G20," Gabriel said. "But I also told them openly that such an appearance was not appropriate given the conflict situation that exists with Turkey, and that it would not fit into the political landscape at this time."
Turkey's presidential spokesperson İbrahim Kalın said, "It is difficult to understand Germany's negative attitude toward the president's possible event, the country has allowed terrorist groups, including the PKK, to hold demonstrations before."
EU Minister Ömer Çelik said on his twitter account regarding the issue that the right to assembly and demonstration has become a tool for internal politics for German politicians.
German-Turkish relations have been strained over the past months, after German local authorities canceled public appearances of Turkish ministers and government officials campaigning ahead of the April 16 referendum in several German towns and cities, based on poor excuses such as the inadequacy of parking lots and security concerns, while allowing pro-PKK events and Turkish opposition officials to rally for the "No" campaign.
In addition, Germany's uncooperative stance with regard to the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) has also been a source of tension as the country has been a safe haven for hundreds of FETÖ members, including high-ranking NATO military officers.
The two countries went through the same crisis almost a year ago. A German parliamentary defense commission delegation was not allowed to pay a visit to the Incirlik Air Base after the German parliament adopted a controversial resolution regarding the events of 1915.
Since 2015, Germany has stationed around 260 troops, six high-tech Tornado surveillance jets and a tanker aircraft at Incirlik Air Base. German government June 7 approved a plan to remove its troop reconnaissance aircraft from Incirlik and relocate it to an air base in Jordan.
