Turkey to halt extraditions to US until it gets Gulen
January 11, 2018
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said he will not turn over terror suspects until he gets the US-based cleric. He claims - amongst other things - that Gulen masterminded a failed coup in 2016.
On Thursday, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that his country will no longer facilitate US extradition requests until Washington hands over US-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen. Erdogan says the cleric is a "terrorist" and holds him responsible for orchestrating a failed coup attempt in Turkey in 2016.
"We have given the United States 12 terrorists so far, but they have not given us back the one we want. They made up excuses from thin air," Erdogan said at his presidential palace in Ankara.
Gulen has lived in the US since 1999Image: picture alliance/dpa/M.Smith
The US has denied repeated requests for Gulen's extradition, citing a need for evidence of his involvement in the coup. Erdogan vowed, "If you are not giving him to us, then excuse us, but from now on whenever you ask for another terrorist, as long as I am in office, you will not get them."
Coup, coup everywhere
The two NATO partners have had strained relations of late, stemming from a number of issues including President Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and most recently the conviction of a Turkish banker from the majority state-owned Halkbank on charges that he broke US sanctions laws by conducting business with Iran. Erdogan criticized the conviction as part of a "political coup attempt" designed to damage Turkey, and organized by the CIA, FBI and Gulen.
The most serious issues of contention, however, have been US support for the Kurdish YPG militia and its PYD political arm in Syria - both of which Ankara says are terrorist organizations - and the failure to extradite Gulen, who has been living in the US state of Pennsylvania since 1999. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu cited both issues on Wednesday when he warned relations could deteriorate further.
NATO partners adrift: USA and Turkey
Turkish-US relations have soured despite President Donald Trump's hosting of his "friend" President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Washington in May. DW traces what led to the allies having their worst spat in five decades.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/AP Photo/E. Tazegul
Jovial gestures belie multiple disputes
May 16, 2017: Trump welcomes Erdogan to Washington, saying both presidents have a "great relationship" and would make it "even better." Erdogan congratulates Trump on his "legendary" 2016 election win but complains bitterly about US arming of the Kurdish YPG militia, claiming that its inclusion in the US-led campaign against IS in in war-torn Syria provides a cover for Kurdish separatism.
Image: Reuters/K.Lamarque
Melee becomes further irritant
May 17: As Erdogan ends his visit, Voice of America video footage emerges showing his guards assaulting Kurdish protesters outside the Turkish ambassador's residence in Washington. A month later, US authorities issue arrest warrants for 12 members of Erdogan's security detail, who had long returned to Turkey. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says the assaults breached "legitimate" free speech.
Image: picture alliance/AP Photo/Voice of America
First anniversary of coup attempt
July 15, 2017: Turkey marks the first anniversary of the failed coup attempt. In a post-coup bid crackdown 50,000 people were arrested, accused of links to the US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, an Erdogan ally-turned-rival. Tens of thousands more face job suspensions. The refusal of the US to extradite Gulen has been a major sore spot in relations.
Image: picture-alliance/abaca/M. Cetinmuhurdar
Turkey 'uneasy' about US arming of Kurdish militia
August 23: US Defense Secretary James Mattis visits Ankara as the Pentagon stresses US commitment to bilateral relations and "honest dialogue." Mattis had just visited Iraq to assess the anti-IS campaign. Erdogan tells Turkish media that Turkey will thwart any attempt by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) to establish a "terror corridor" in northern Syria through to the Mediterranean.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/K. Ozer
Turkey arrests US consulate employee
October 5: Turkish authorities arrest Metin Topuz, a Turkish national employed at the US consulate in Istanbul. He is formally charged with espionage and collaboration in the 2016 coup attempt. The US embassy in Ankara subsequently says it is "deeply disturbed" by the arrest. It's reportedly the second since March, when a Turkish US consulate employee was arrested in Adana.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/N. Elden
US and Turkey suspend their respective visa services
October 8-9: The United States suspends its issuance of non-immigrant visa applications to Turkish nationals, saying it has to "reassess" Turkish readiness to respect security at US diplomatic missions. Turkey suspends its visa services for US nationals and summons another staffer at the US consulate in Istanbul.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa,AP
Attempts to make amends
November 6: The US Embassy in Ankara announces that it is reinstating its visa program for Turkish tourists on a "limited" basis after receiving assurances from the government that no employees will be detained "for carrying out official duties." Shortly thereafter, Turkey confirms that it is also resuming visa services for US citizens one day before Prime Minister Yildirim visits Washington.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/B. Ozbilici
At odds over Russian missiles
December through August, 2018: In December, Turkey announced it would buy the Russian S-400 missile system, which is incompatable with NATO systems. The US Congress has included a provision in a defense bill that would cut Turkey out of the F-35 fighter jet program if it moves forward with the S-400 deal.
Image: Getty Images/S. Barbour
Release the pastor ... or else
August 1, 2018: The US sanctions Turkey's interior and justice ministers over the continued detention of pastor Andrew Brunson. Brunson had been moved from prison to house arrest in late July, but that fell short of US demands for his immediate release and end to terror and espionage charges. Brunson was arrested almost two years ago.
Turkey's post-coup crackdown has been severe, leading to the mass detainment and job dismissal of people accused by the government of having connections to what it calls the Gulen network. Some 55,000 people have been arrested in the purge that has followed the failed coup.
In a surprise decision handed down Thursday, Turkey's Constitutional Court ordered the release of two journalists, saying that their rights had been violated. Mehmet Altan and Sahin Alpay, who have been in jail for more than a year, were accused of having ties to terrorist organizations. An Istanbul penal court, however, later denied a request for the two to be released, in defiance of the higher court's order.
According to the Turkish non-profit press freedom website P24, 151 journalists are currently behind bars in Turkey, including German Journalist Deniz Yücel, who works for daily Die Welt.
