US clashes with Turkey in Nato talks
03 December, 2020
US Secretary of Condition Mike Pompeo strongly criticised Turkey at a Nato ministerial assembly, participants told AFP on Wednesday, raising the expectations of some allies pressing for sanctions against Ankara.
A US spokesman would not confirm or deny the details of Mr Pompeo's participation in Tuesday's foreign minister's videoconference, but several well-placed resources described the exchange as heated.
Turkey has faced criticism above its stance in a good maritime territorial dispute with fellow Nato member Greece and its own support for Azerbaijan found in the recently revived conflict with Armenia above a disputed enclave.
European warships are also wanting to enforce an arms embargo over war-torn Libya, where Turkey is certainly supporting the Tripoli federal government.
Some Nato and EU participants -- with the notable exception of France -- have already been wary of criticising President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government, for concern with escalating the crises.
But Pompeo, going to one of his previous Nato meetings -- as US President Donald Trump's adminstration will keep office the following month -- did not restrain in an exchange with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Senior individuals told AFP that Mr Pompeo accused Turkey of using in to the hands of Nato's rival Moscow by buying the Russian S-400 missile defence system, regardless of the allies' opposition, 1 participant told AFP.
And he urged Ankara to behave more like an ally, accusing it of thwarting efforts to build unanimity for essential reforms, according to those engaging.
"His intervention was quite short, but very clear," the senior official informed AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity to describe a closed-door diplomatic dialogue.
Another source familiar with the talks said the exchange was "punchy".
The official US STATE DEPT. readout of the meeting did not mention Turkey, but Mr Pompeo possesses been significant of Ankara in new weeks.
Washington's leading diplomat was found in Paris last month, and told the daily Le Figaro that he previously spoken with President Emmanuel Macron and agreed that Turkey's recent actions have been "very aggressive".
Germany is leading a good diplomatic outreach to Turkey to attempt to resolve some of the European capitals' considerations, and Nato has setup a "deconfliction mechanism" to mind off accidental clashes with Greek forces.
However, many EU members are as well pushing for financial sanctions.
Mr Macron clashed with Erdogan at December's Nato summit in London, however the Turkish innovator was reportedly defended by Mr Trump.
At this week's talks the American envoy was less protective of Turkey, and France and Luxembourg joined Mr Pompeo in going on the attack.
EU customers will decide at a summit on December 10 whether to begin the process of applying sanctions against Turkey for violating Greek waters to search for gas or breaching a UN arms embargo in Libya.
"Ankara no longer includes a lot of support found in the EU, seeing that the Turks possess not adopted any more positive behaviour because the adoption of the double approach in October," an EU official told AFP.
The twice strategy -- German led diplomacy backed by the threat implied by the EU drawing up lists of potential sanctions targets -- even now gets the support of Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel.
But, resources told AFP, she could be the last shape position against sanctions when the EU up coming meets on the problem.
Source: www.thenationalnews.com