Turkey slaps sanctions on Dutch, rejects EU criticism

Istanbul

TURKEY on Tuesday rejected European Union criticism of its stance in the intensifying crisis with the Netherlands as having "no value", after Ankara downgraded relations with The Hague and banned its ambassador from returning.

In a dramatic escalation after the Netherlands prevented two Turkish ministers from holding rallies ahead of a referendum on strengthening President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's powers, Ankara said it was suspending high-level relations with the Hague in a raft of diplomatic sanctions.