Turks killed in Iraq: new diplomatic clash between Washington and Ankara
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a meeting with then-Vice President Joe Biden in Washington in March 2016. Andrew CABALLERO AFP / File
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan criticized the United States on Monday (February 15th) for supporting fighters from the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) whom Ankara accuses of having killed thirteen of its nationals held captive in northern Iraq.
The reaction of the United States angered the Turkish authorities, who summoned the American ambassador to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Relations are already expected to be tense between Turkey and the new US administration.
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Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Joe Biden have not yet spoken by phone since the latter's inauguration, but the Ankara authorities continue to send increasingly firm messages to the US president.
The
death of 13 Turkish citizens captives of the PKK
was another occasion.
For Turkey, these Turkish citizens would have been executed by the PKK, the Kurdistan Workers' Party.
The organization admitted the death of a group of prisoners, but according to it, they would have died in Turkish bombardments which are very frequent in the area.
At first, the Turkish leaders denounced the "
silence
" of their Western partners, reports
our correspondent in Istanbul
,
Anne Andlauer
.
Then came a statement from the US State Department which deplored "
the death of Turkish citizens in the Iraqi Kurdistan region
" while specifying that "
the United States condemns this action with the greatest firmness if the information on the death of Turkish civilians in the hands of the PKK are confirmed
”.
American support for Kurdish fighters
These last words shattered President Erdogan, who called the American statement a "
joke
", accusing Washington of being "
alongside
" and even "
behind the terrorists
", and summoned the American ambassador to the ministry. of Foreign Affairs in Ankara.
Turkey has denounced for several years the support of the United States to the Kurdish fighters of Syria, the YPG, very close to the PKK.
In recent weeks, senior Turkish officials have told the new US administration that no noticeable improvement in relations is possible without a halt in this support.
Faced with Turkish wrath, American diplomacy finally recognized that the "
PK terrorists
" were, in fact, responsible for the death of thirteen Turkish hostages.
►
See also: Turkey: 718 arrests in pro-Kurdish circles across the country
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Turkey
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
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