The top Turkish diplomats are expected to meet with US diplomats in Washington this week to continue discussions on the extradition of self-exiled cleric Fethullah Gülen, believed to be the mastermind behind the failed coup attempt in Turkey that caused the deaths of at least 208 people.
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and US Secretary of State John Kerry were to meet on the sidelines of an international meeting on the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on July 20 and 21. Along with Çavuşoğlu and Kerry, the foreign ministers of some of the other anti-ISIL coalition countries will also be present in Washington.
They will discuss the current state of affairs in the fight against ISIL in Iraq and Syria and the next moves in an attempt to weaken and defeat the terrorists.
At the same time, the meeting will give the Turkish foreign minister the opportunity to discuss developments in Turkey after the failed coup attempt. Çavuşoğlu was expected to inform his counterparts on the coup attempt and its perpetrators during his bilateral meetings with the participant countries. The meetings will come after the EU and European countries urged Turkey to stay within the boundaries of the law while investigating the coup.
In this framework, Çavuşoğlu’s meeting with Kerry will be an important one, particularly with regards to the ongoing disagreement over the role of Gülen and his organisation is said to have played in staging the coup attempt on July 15. Turkey has stepped up its demands that the US hand over Gülen who has lived in Pennsylvania for the past 18 years.
Hurriyet
