On a pleasant evening in Ludwigshafen, the Royal Ottoman Society welcomed Volker Tschapke, honorary chairman of the Prussian Society of Berlin-Brandenburg. After a warm welcome by Jalaluddin Riebler, we talked about how everyday gestures, shared history and mutual respect can deepen the bond between Germany and Turkey.
A simple path to stronger ties
Volker Tschapke reminded us that better German-Turkish relations do not require grand diplomatic projects. “We need only avoid letting the things that irritate us dominate our interactions,” he said. Small, sincere acts of neighbourliness, at a market stall, in a café or in a conversation on the street, are what truly sustain friendship.
The World Cup flag story
He described a scene from a football World Cup. While Turkey was still in the tournament, many shops and cafés in Dortmund displayed Turkish flags alongside German ones. As soon as the Turkish team was out, the same businesses took down the Turkish flags overnight and put up German ones instead. Volker Tschapke called this “a beautiful proof of friendship”, showing how simple symbols can say more than any political statement.
The Özil debate in perspective
Asked about the media attention surrounding the footballer Mesut Özil, Volker Tschapke called the whole debate “completely unnecessary and overblown”. He criticised the German Football Association’s handling of the matter and recalled a story about Frederick the Great, who once had a newspaper lowered so that everyone could read it. The lesson, he suggested, is to seek openness and inclusion rather than forcing people into either-or choices.
Respecting sovereignty and an independent course
The conversation then turned to Turkey’s increasingly independent cultural, economic and political course. Volker Tschapke reaffirmed the principle of non-interference in the United Nations Charter: the Turkish people have the right to decide their own future without pressure from any other nation. He compared this resilience to Prussia’s recovery after its defeat by Napoleon, when internal reforms opened a new era of strength.
Reflections on history and identity
Finally, we reflected on how both societies remember their past. While Turkey is rediscovering its Ottoman legacy, Germany has largely left its monarchical symbols behind. Volker Tschapke observed that public debate in Germany today is shaped by “political correctness” and post-Cold-War narratives, in contrast to the more open historical debates in Turkey.
We are grateful to Volker Tschapke for his insights and to everyone who took part. If you would like to connect more deeply with our community and support the work of the Royal Ottoman Society, please visit our Community page. Together we can keep nurturing the German-Turkish friendship that lives in everyday actions and shared history.
