Epiloge:LessonsLearned, 1939 – 1944/194 5
FortheGermandiplomatsTurkeywasanenthusiasticcoalitionpartner,asthe
Germanambassadornoted:“Germanmilitaryvirtueswereheldinahighesteem
withintheTurkisharmy.Wethushavestrongsupportamongarmycircleswith
directimpactonpolitics.”³²⁸TheTurkishForeignMinisterprovidedseveralrea-
sonswhytheTurkishgovernmentdidfavorneutrality.However,heraisedRib-
bentrop’shopesbyclaimingthat“Turkey[...]wouldbeabletosignamilitary
alliance with Germanythe very nextday.”³²⁹ But the Turkish government
neverintendedtojointhewaronthesideofGermanyalthoughitcaredtomain-
taingoodrelationswiththeNSregime.Inthisregard,alsoformerGermanin-
structorslikeWülfingvonDittenagreedthattheTurkishgovernmentdidwell
nottoparticipatein“theGermandesperadopolicy.”³³⁰InTurkeytherewasa
strongpro-Germanfractionwithinthemilitary,includingtheheadoftheGeneral
Staff.Thesemenopposedthepolicystanceofpresidentİsmetİnönü:“Many
armyofficerslikedtheGermansbecausetheyhadbeentrainedbythem,had
foughtalongsidethemintheFirstGreatWar[sic],andcontinuedtoadmire
theirdiscipline.ThisincludedFevziÇakmakwhodeeplyadmiredthem.”³³¹
Çakmakwascarefulenoughtomaintaingoodrelationswiththeenemiesof
theAxispowers.³³²Otherlower-rankingTurkishofficersfollowedtheearlyGer-
mancampaignswithamixtureofenthusiasmandfear.Therehadbeendoubts
sincethefirstdaysofthewar,whenevenpro-Germanofficershadrecognizedthe
resemblancebetweentheTurkishandthePolisharmies:
“[...][W]iththesuccessoftheGermantroops[pro-GermanTurkishofficers]urgedtotake
sidewithGermany.Allofussalivated[inthefaceof]thedownthrowofothercountries
likeplayingcardsinashorttimescale.[...]Inthismannerthefirstoperationwasconduct-
edagainstPoland.ThePolisharmy,liketheTurkishone,hadmanycavalryunits,wasbrave
andinmyviewwasastrongarmy.”³³³AmbassadorvonKellertotheForeignSecretaryofStatevonWeizsäcker,17May 19 38.ADAP
SeriesDvol.5, 195 3,598.
TurkishForeignMinisterMenemencioğluinaconversationwiththeGermanForeignMin-
isterRibbentropinBerlin,7July1 93 8.In:ADAPSeriesDvol.5, 195 3, 61 4.
WülfingvonDitten,MeineLebenserinnerungen,vol.I,1stpart,n.p.
Weisband,TurkishForeignPolicy 1943 – 1945 ,2 50 – 25 1.
OnthenegotiationsbetweenÇakmak,GündüzandtheBritishmilitaryleadershipforamili-
taryallianceseeBrockMillman,TheIll-MadeAlliance:Anglo-TurkishRelations,1 934 – 1940
(Montreal:McGill-Queen’sUniversityPress,1998), 294 – 299.
Çelikoğlu,BirDarbeciSubayınAnıları,41, 42.
234 4German-TurkishMilitaryCooperationafter1 918