US Ambassador to Turkey Bass: There is No One Hiding in US Missions

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U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, John Bass, has come together with the diplomacy reporters in his farewell meeting with the press in Turkey.

Concerning the allegations that a US Embassy staff hiding in the embassy, US Ambassador to Turkey Bass has said, “There is no one hiding in the US missions. We are not trying to hide anyone from the jurisdiction”.

Sevil Erkuş from Hürriyet daily newspaper reported that Bass delivered the following messages to theDiplomacy Reporters’ Association:

We couldn’t obtain any information regarding the detention of the US mission staff but the talks continue.

- The decision to halt the services was taken by the US government.

- Metin Topuz was serving at the Drug Enforcement Organized Crime. A great number of drug trafficker was captured thanks to this cooperation. If he established some other contacts going beyond his mission, we would be pleased to see the other information about it.

- The US doesn’t support independent Kurdistan. It doesn’t support the Kurdish corridor. It doesn’t support that Turkey territorial integrity be disrupted.

- Address Turkish authorities about the İncirlik Base. There are agreements in effect. Soldiers’ entering and leaving are defined by these agreements.

- Each government defines how it will maintain its relationship with foreign representatives. We respect that.

- No terror attack has been occurring in Turkey for 9.5 months. This is not because the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) gave up but this is the result of our cooperation.

- Extradition of Fethullah Gülen is a legal matter. This request is not held separate from other extradition requests. Presumption of innocence is the fundamental principle in the US legal system. (EKN/TK)