ANKARA, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Tugrul Turkes said on Friday that the Netherlands' ban on his scheduled visit to the country is an "intervention to Turkish citizens' democratic rights."
His remarks came after the Dutch government declared that Turkes was not welcome to the country for a commemorating ceremony of the failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016, local Dogan News Agency reported.
Dutch Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the attendance by Turkes or other Turkish ministers was undesirable "given the current circumstances in the bilateral relations."
The decision is a "natural consequence" of events in March, read the statement.
In a written statement, Turkey's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Huseyin Muftuoglu responded that Turkish citizens abroad are organizing events to mark the anniversary of July 15 coup attempt "regardless of our bilateral relations" with the countries they are in.
The ties between Turkey and the Netherlands became strained in the past year. In March, the Dutch government forbade Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya from entering the country to campaign for the April 16 referendum on constitutional amendments.
