Bolton: Turkey-US Crisis Could Be Over Instantly If Pastor Brunson is Released

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The US National Security Adviser John Bolton spoke to the Reuters News Agency during his visit to Israel. Bolton said, "Look, the Turkish government made a big mistake in not releasing Pastor Brunson."

Stating that the crisis between the US and Turkey can end instantly in case Brunson is released, Bolton said,

"Every day that goes by that mistake continues, this crisis could be over instantly if they did the right thing as a NATO ally, part of the West, and release pastor Brunson without condition."

After a meeting held by John Bolton and Turkey's Ambassador to Washington Serdar Kılıç last week, Bloomberg White House correspondent Jennifer Jacobs reported that Bolton told the ambassador that there was nothing to discuss until Brunson is freed.

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Could it affect Turkey's NATO membership?

In response to a question whether the crisis between the US and Turkey could affect Turkey's membership of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Bolton said,

"That is not an issue at the moment. We are focused on Pastor Brunson and the other Americans that the Turkish government is holding illegitimately and we expect that to get resolved."

"Qatar's pledge of support is utterly insufficient"

Bolton was also asked a question about the approval of Qatar's Emir for a package of economic projects, which also includes a 15-billion-dollar pledge of support to Turkey. In response to the question, Bolton stated,

"Well, I think what they pledged is utterly insufficient to have an impact on Turkey's economy. It's certainly not helpful but we'll actually see what develops from their pledge." (PT/SD)