How Germany spotted Turkey and needed so many

Submitted by myth (Germany), Nov 5, 2016 at 05:47

Thiago, the article is correct to point out that the agreement with Turkey came late and followed earlier agreements with other countries. Turkey was obviously not Germany's first choice.

I would also go back in time and review the situation of Europe at that time only 15 years after WW2. In the case of Greece I am surprised how many Greeks came given that German military committed some massacres during WW2. Spain was still a fascist country at the time with general Franco. I find it hard to imagine that Germany was an attractive destination for either the fascist supporters or their opponents. Among the former ally fraction Germany did recruite from Italy. Other former allies found themselves beyond the Iron curtain.

Germany lost 5 million able men in WW2 exceeding the death toll of Western European or Southern European countries by an order of magnitude. That number accounts for the very high demand of workers. Ironically, the destruction of infrastructure in Europe by both Germany and allied bombing produced am equally high demand for industrial production. In terms of high population France or Italy could supply workforce.

Germany signed a friendship treaty with France in the sixties which among other things agreed to mutually accept school diplomas. That treaty allowed for the exchange of highly educated people, it was not designed for unskilled workers. Its purpose was to end hostilities between the two countries, not to degrade the French to cheap workforce. This treaty follows the road that led to the EU.

Italy did have the high population but people did not come in larger numbers.

Summing this up, after exhausting the motivated of the less-populous contries, skipping former enemies, discarding Eastern Europe as inaccessible across the Iron curtain, Germany discovered Turkey. The Turks on the other hand proved to be the most flexible of all competitors in the marketplace - and numerous.

Given this fast development of Germany's strong relationship with Turkey, I rather find it quite surprising, that Germany did not push for Turkey to become a member state of the EU already in the sixities.

But again, those were different days when a Volkswagen was not driven by software but an air cooled engine in the rear of a Beetle.

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