Staunch Erdogan Critic to Become German Agriculture Minister

The co-chairman of the Green Party, Cem Ozdemir, speaks at a regional party conference in Berlin, 30 September 2017. Photo: EPA-EFE/FELIPE TRUEBA

Ozdemir is a senior Green politician representing the party's reformist wing whose parents came to Germany from Turkey as "guest workers" in the 1960s.

He is known for his harsh criticism of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his autocratic rule at home and activities in Europe.

On October 31, Ozdemir accused Erdogan of promoting Islamist terrorism in Europe. "President Erdogan constantly pours oil on the fire, and contributes to violence and terrorism," he said.

Previously, he has accused Erdogan of manipulating people of Turkish origin in Europe, referencing the election rallies he organised among the diaspora in European cities before various European governments banned such events.

In a TV interview in 2017, Ozdemir declared that any attempt to create a "parallel society in Germany" must be stopped immediately.

"Too many Turkish opposition supporters … fear they are insufficiently protected in Germany. I feel we need to give a crystal-clear answer that we will not tolerate anything like that. I think Germany is a little too naive in that regard," Ozdemir said, restating his own support for the Turkish opposition, rights movements and civil society.

Ozdemir, 55, was born into a Turkish-Circassian family who migrated to Germany from the Anatolian city of Tokat. Ozdemir himself was born in Germany.

He joined the German Greens when he was only 16 and at 29 was elected an MP to the Bundestag. He headed the German Greens between 2008 and 2018.

In last general elections on September 26, he won a record high 40 per cent of votes in his local polling district in...