May to explore trade deal with Turkey

Theresa May arrives in Ankara on Saturday to hold talks with her “important ally,” President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, amid criticism that Britain is prioritising a trade agreement and arms sales to Turkey in spite of concerns about human rights abuses.

The UK prime minister will announce plans to set up a joint working group with Mr Erdogan to explore a possible free-trade deal between the two countries after Britain leaves the EU, with arms sales a key element of trade.

Her visit is being warmly welcomed by Mr Erdogan and his allies as a contrast to stinging criticism from the EU over a government purge that has severely strained Turkey’s relations with the continental bloc.

Mrs May’s team described as “speculation” reports that a new arms deal might be announced during the visit to Ankara, which follows the prime minister’s two-day visit to the US.

Official UK data showed that Britain sold almost £50m worth of arms to Turkey since a failed putsch in July, even as Mr Erdogan carried out a sweeping crackdown on those accused of aiding the coup attempt, as well as opposition leaders and journalists.

UK officials declined to say whether the prime minister would raise issues such as press freedom and political repression during the trip, saying that she regarded Turkey as “an important ally.”

But an aide insisted: “There are no issues that the prime minister is afraid to bring up.”

Mrs May regards Turkey as an invaluable ally in the fight against Islamist extremism and the UK has built up intelligence expertise in the region.

UK officials say they find relaying their concerns in private to be more productive than the public scoldings the EU leadership has chosen. But neither has resulted in more moderate behaviour by Mr Erdogan as he seeks to create an executive presidency through a referendum on a new constitution.

Mrs May’s visit will play well to Mr Erdogan’s supporters, “as a reminder that our true friends understand the position we are in”, an aide to Mr Erdogan said. “We are fighting multiple enemies, and getting no support from either the US or the EU.”

Mrs May and Mr Erdogan are expected to agree a “strategic security partnership”, focusing on aviation security and counter-terrorism work, as well as the civil war in Syria.

Turkey was used as a gateway for British jihadis who travelled to Syria, and UK security officials maintain a close relationship with Turkish counter-intelligence agencies to track and intercept them.

Ankara, an important supporter of Syrian rebels, has also emerged as a critical player in attempts to resolve the conflict in Syria as it co-operates with Russia and Iran, which back President Bashar al-Assad.

British Tornado fighter jets joined Turkish F-16 warplanes this month in bombing Isis targets near al-Bab, a Syrian town controlled by the jihadi group that Mr Erdogan has pledged to liberate, according to the Turkish military.

That was in contrast to the reluctance of Washington to support the Turkish military with air strikes, further straining Turkey’s relations with the US, according to the presidential aide.

Mr Erdogan was particularly pleased by a public acknowledgment by British officials of the ties between Kurdish militants in Syria — which the US supports in the fight against Isis — and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) in Turkey.

The PKK has waged a near 40-year insurgency, and US insistence on ignoring the group’s links to Syrian Kurds, has angered Mr Erdogan, the aide said.

Relations between Britain and Turkey were strained during last year’s EU referendum campaign, when Brexit campaigner Boris Johnson — now the UK’s foreign secretary — claimed that Turkish accession to the EU could lead to a new flood of migrants.

Having suggested that Turkey should not be allowed to join the EU — at least while Britain was a member — Mr Johnson in September changed tack and said Britain would support its membership bid.

Mr Johnson also promised to co-operate with Turkish authorities to get to the bottom of any links in the UK to Fethullah Gulen, the US-based cleric accused by Mr Erdogan of masterminding last year’s coup attempt.

Mr Johnson said last year: “Gulenism and the way that they act and the way they behave is very foreign to us. We are trying to learn as much as we can from our Turkish friends exactly what this organisation is, how it behaves, how it dictates an agenda.”