ANKARA // Turkey’s prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, warned he may expel some foreign ambassadors over “provocative actions”, amid mounting tensions over an anti-graft inquiry that has ensnared government allies.
His comments came after judges in Istanbul charged the sons of the interior minister and the economy minister with acting as intermediaries to give and take bribes, the Hurriyet newspaper reported.
Mr Erdogan’s remarks were considered a veiled threat to US ambassador, Francis Ricciardone, after he was reported to have commented on the unfolding bribery scandal.
“Some ambassadors are engaged in provocative actions ... Do your job,” Mr Erdogan said in the Black Sea city of Samsun. “We don’t have to keep you in our country.”
“Get out of this country!” headlined the Yeni Safak newspaper, with a picture of the US envoy on its front page.
According to some pro-government media outlets, Mr Ricciardone said Washington had warned the state-owned Halkbank to cut its ties with sanctions-hit Iran.
The bank is at the centre of a high-profile graft investigation that has touched the heart of Mr Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) government.
Halkbank’s chief executive, Suleyman Aslan, was one of scores of people arrested in the case.
Mr Aslan was charged early yesterday with taking bribes, Hurriyet said. Azerbaijani businessman Reza Zarrab was meanwhile charged with forming a ring that bribed officials to disguise illegal gold sales to Iran via Halkbank.
The sons of interior minister, Muammer Guler, and economy minister, Zafer Caglayan, were also formally arrested.
Police seized US$4.5 million (Dh16.52m) in cash hidden in shoe boxes in Mr Aslan’s home, local media reported last week.
In addition, at least 60 police chiefs have been purged this week, sparking concerns of an escalating confrontation between Mr Erdogan and his former political ally, US-based Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, who has a wide following in the police and judiciary.
Mr Gulen fell out with Mr Erdogan earlier this year over the premier’s attempt to close private study halls, foreign policy and his decision to keep members of the so-called Gulen movement out of top government positions.
Mr Erdogan said the mass detentions were part of a conspiracy targeting his government, which has swept three successive elections in a row since 2002.
The Turkish premier yesterday defended Halkbank which he claimed was targeted by international plotters.
“We have raised the bank’s market value to $25bn. They are targeting this successful state bank,” he told AKP supporters. “This bank is intimidating Turkey’s enemies.”
Halkbank has come under fire from some quarters in the United States for alleged illegal transactions to Iran. The bank has denied the claims.
Mr Ricciardone was quoted as telling EU ambassadors that Washington had issued a warning to Halkbank.
“We asked Halkbank to cut its links with Iran. They did not listen to us. You are watching the collapse of an empire,” he was quoted as saying by several Turkish newspapers.
“I am not aware of any such meeting,” an EU diplomat said.
Mr Ricciardone denied the media reports as “baseless” on his Turkish-language Twitter account.
“Nobody should put US-Turkish relations into jeopardy through baseless allegations,” he said.
“The United States has nothing to do with the continuing corruption investigation.”
Mr Ricciardone has had an uneasy relationship with the AKP government since his appointment in January 2011.
MrErdogan called him a “rookie” after Mr Ricciardone raised the issue of jailed journalists in Turkey.
In February, the government warned him to stop meddling in Turkey’s domestic affairs after he criticised “flaws” in the justice system, highlighting “lengthy pretrial detentions, lack of clarity in presenting charges, lack of transparency”.
Agence France-Presse
