As the row between Turkey and the US escalates,
the Turkish government says it no longer recognises the US ambassador to
Ankara. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced this on Tuesday, October 10,
following the row sparked by the arrest of a US consulate employee. Mr Erdogan
referring to John Bass, the ambassador during a news conference while on a trip
to Serbia, said: “We do not recognise him as the representative of the U.S. in
Turkey, I say this quite openly. We did not start this problem." On
Sunday, October 8, the US stopped offering non-immigrant visa services in
Turkey, citing security concerns. Hours later, Turkish missions in the US took
a similar step and also froze US passport holders out of an electronic visa
system. AD A member of staff of the U.S. consulate in Istanbul was arrested
last week. He is the second U.S. member of staff arrested this year, while a
third employee is being sought for questioning and his family members are being
held in custody. Turkey's alleged focus on anti-American rhetoric in the media,
notably in pro-government circles is part of the grievances the US has Mr
Erdogan says the sharp deterioration in relations was caused by Mr Bass, who
will soon take up a post in Afghanistan, after being appointed to Kabul by
President Donald Trump. According to The Guardian, Mr Bass said the arrest of
the US consulate employee arrested last week, “has raised questions about
whether the goal of some officials is to disrupt the long-standing cooperation”
between Washington and Ankara. “At this time, we can’t predict how long it will
take to resolve this matter,” Mr Bass said.
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“Turkey was a close NATO ally and the U.S.
would continue to coordinate joint and separate military activities with
Ankara," spokesman for Pentagon, Robert Manning, a colonel, said.
Meanwhile, the Comptroller-General of Customs, retired Col.Hameed Ali and
Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Hakan Cakil, have agreed to cooperate to stop
the export of harmful items into both countries
Ali
announced this in a statement by the service public relations Officer, Mr
Joseph Attah, on Tuesday, September 26, in Abuja. Attah said the meeting was
held due to concerns expressed by the general public over the recent seizures
of pump actions riffles imported from Turkey.
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