Ankara (Web Desk): Turkey has accused the US State Department of making false claims after a meeting between top US and Turkish diplomats to discuss tense ties between the NATO allies.
Washington and Ankara are at odds over issues including US support for a Syrian Kurdish militia viewed as terrorists by Ankara and Turkey´s purchase of a Russian missile system over US objections.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held talks on Wednesday during the Turkish official´s visit to Washington as part of 70th anniversary celebrations of the NATO alliance.
This afternoon, @SecPompeo welcomed #Turkey’s Foreign Minister @MevlutCavusoglu to the State Department. @MFATurkey @USEmbassyTurkey @TurkishEmbassy pic.twitter.com/Q9ynqno6bM
— Department of State (@StateDept) April 3, 2019
The US State Department said Pompeo had warned Ankara of "devastating consequences" if Turkey launches an offensive in Syria and urged the "swift resolution" of legal cases involving US citizens and US mission employees under investigation in Turkey.
Pompeo also pressed Causoglu about Turkey´s plans to buy the S-400 missile defence system from Russia, which Washington has warned could put Ankara at risk of US sanctions, the State Department said in a statement.
But Turkish foreign ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said on Thursday that the readout "not only fails to reflect the content of the meeting, but also contains matters that were not even raised during said meeting".
