U.S. Demand Evidence Over Detained Staff To End Visa Dispute
The United State (US) delegation on Wednesday asked Turkey for information and evidence regarding consular staff whose detention has led to a diplomatic rift and suspension of visa services.
Two locally employed U.S. mission staff have been arrested in Turkey.
A translator at the consulate in the southern province was detained in may and also of Adana was arrested and two weeks ago a Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) worker was detained in Istanbul.
Turkish police want to question a third worker based in Istanbul. His wife and daughter were detained on Oct. 11 over alleged links to the network of U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, blamed by Ankara for orchestrating the abortive putsch.
They were later released. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has accused U.S. officials of sheltering him in their Istanbul consulate. HaberTurk said the U.S. delegation which arrived in Turkey on Monday laid out four conditions to solve the visa crisis, including Turkey providing information about investigations into consulate workers and evidence related to the DEA worker Metin Topuz and the other worker who is being sought.
Erdogan’s spokesman said Topuz had been in contact with a leading suspect in 2016 failed military coup. Turkish media reported similar accusations against the translator in May. The U.S. embassy in Ankara has said such accusations are baseless.
HaberTurk said the U.S. delegation told Ankara that if the contacts which Turkish authorities are seeking to investigate were undertaken on the instructions of the consulate, the employees should not have been arrested.
Private news channel CNN Turk quoted Turkish foreign ministry sources saying the ministry would not accept pre-conditions to the talks.
Source: NAN
