Berat Albayrak
Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak on Friday said Turkey and the United States needed to work together to overcome the sanctions spat and flaring tensions that ensued after Turkey refused to release American Pastor Andrew Craig Brunson, who faces terrorism charges in Turkey.
“The period must be navigated bearing the two countries’ strong historical ties in mind. We must look from today to tomorrow regarding our ties to the U.S.,” Albayrak said.
“I spoke with our foreign minister this morning. Both countries are putting forth a reulst-oriented stance. Our ties will never be severed,” he added.
The United States and Turkey have agreed to work closely to resolve issues between them, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said on Friday, following what he said was a "constructive" meeting with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.Çavuşoğlu and Pompeo met on the sidelines of a meeting of regional ministers in Singapore. Their talks came after Washington imposed sanctions on two of Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan's ministers over the trial of a U.S. pastor accused of backing terrorism. Turkey has said the sanctions are unacceptable.Çavuşoğlu, in comments to Turkish broadcasters, said he and Pompeo had also discussed potential joint steps the two countries could take regarding Syria's Idlib and Manbij. The NATO allies have also been at odds over Syria policy.Turkish FM, US counterpart meet in SingaporeUS, Turkish foreign ministers agree to try to resolve issues
Turkey and US agreed to work closely to resolve issues, Turkish minister says
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his Turkish counterpart, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, agreed in a meeting in Singapore on Friday to continue to try to resolve issues between the two countries.
On Wednesday, White House spokesperson Sarah Sanders said that the U.S. had imposed sanctions on Süleyman Soylu, the interior minister, and Abdulhamit Gül, the justice minister, for not releasing American Pastor Andrew Craig Brunson, who faces terrorism charges in Turkey.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu agreed on Friday to try to resolve a series of disputes, after relations between the NATO allies sank to their lowest point in decades.Their meeting in Singapore followed Washington's imposition on Wednesday of sanctions on two Turkish ministers over the case of Andrew Brunson, a U.S. pastor on trial in Turkey for backing terrorism.State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert described their conversation on the sidelines of a regional ministers' meeting as constructive. "They agreed to continue to try to resolve the issues between our two countries," she said.Turkey and US agreed to work closely to resolve issues, Turkish minister saysÇavuşoğlu said he had repeated Turkey's message that "the threatening language and sanctions does not achieve anything", but added that he and Pompeo would take steps to resolve their differences when they returned home."Of course you can't expect all issues to be resolved in a single meeting," he told Turkish television channels. "But we have agreed to work together, closely cooperate and keep the dialogue in the coming period," he added, also describing the talks as very constructive.Washington imposed sanctions on Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gül and Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu, accusing them of playing leading roles in organisations responsible for the arrest and detention of Brunson, an evangelical Christian who has lived in Turkey for more than two decades. Turkey says US sanctions unacceptable, have limited economic impactWithin hours Turkey vowed to retaliate "without delay" but since then the tone of comments from Ankara has moderated and so far it has taken no such step. Finance minister Berat Albayrak, who is President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's son-in-law, also said relations with the United States would never break down, despite the temporary escalation.Pompeo told reporters the United States had put Turkey on notice "that the clock had run and it was time for Pastor Brunson to be returned"."I hope they'll see this for what it is, a demonstration that we’re very serious," he said of the sanctions. "We consider this one of the many issues that we have with the Turks."Turkey expects positive results in talks with US over sanctions spat"Brunson needs to come home. As do all the Americans being held by the Turkish government. Pretty straightforward. They’ve been holding these folks for a long time. These are innocent people," he said. "We are going to work to see if we can find a way forward; I am hopeful that we can."The United States has also been seeking the release of three locally employed embassy staff detained in Turkey.Brunson has been accused by the Turkish authorities of spying for the PKK (which has been designated as a terrorist group by both the U.S. and Turkey) and U.S.-based Fetullah Gülen and the latter’s Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ), which orchestrated Turkey’s failed July 2016 coup attempt that left 251 martyrs in its wake.Ankara also accuses FETÖ of carrying out a long-running campaign to overthrow the Turkish state through the infiltration of state institutions.Iran FM slams US sanctions on Turkish gov’t ministers
US, Turkey agree to try to resolve disputes
The finance minister also spoke about Turkey's medium-term program.
“We will deliver an announcement in the first half of September. We have spoken to various ministries and initiated a period of austerity. We are aiming for savings of up to 30 percent in the public sector,” Albayrak said.
He added the Turkish economy will be based on healthy and sustainable growth Turkey's economy regains its balance.