Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said today, Saturday, that he had ordered the Foreign Ministry to consider the ambassadors of 10 countries - including the United States, Germany and France "persona non grata" - against the background of their call for the release of opposition businessman Osman Kavala.
Erdogan added - in a speech during the opening of a series of service projects in the state of Eskişehir - that he had instructed the Minister of Foreign Affairs to declare the ten ambassadors persona non grata as soon as possible, noting that these ambassadors must know and understand Turkey, otherwise they should leave our country.
Last Tuesday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry summoned the ambassadors of the United States, Germany, Denmark, Finland and France, as well as the Netherlands, Sweden, Canada, Norway and New Zealand, because of a statement on the Kavala case.
The embassies of the aforementioned countries in Ankara published a statement - via social networking sites - in which they said that the ongoing case against Kavala casts a shadow over democracy and the rule of law in Turkey, calling for his release.
The embassies said in the statement, "The continued delay in his trial, including the merging of different cases and the creation of others after a previous acquittal, casts doubt on the respect for democracy, the rule of law and transparency in the Turkish judicial system."
Kavala has been imprisoned in Turkey for four years without a conviction, despite calls by the European Court of Human Rights for his release.
Kavala was acquitted last year 2020 of charges related to nationwide protests in 2013, but the ruling was overturned this year and the charges were merged with those in another case linked to the failed coup attempt in 2016, as Reuters reports.
In response to the statement;
Turkish Interior Minister Suleiman Soylu said - in previous statements - that Turkey is a state of law that enjoys democracy, and stressed - on Twitter - that ambassadors submitting a recommendation and proposal to the judiciary in an existing case is unacceptable, and added, "Your recommendation and proposal casts doubt on your understanding. law and democracy.