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U.S. and Turkey visa crisis ends after three-month standoff
Source: Washington Post
U.S. and Turkey visa crisis ends after three-month standoff
By Carol Morello and Erin Cunningham December 28 at 3:16 PM
The United States and Turkey announced Thursday an end to visa restrictions that have affected thousands of travelers, but tensions continued to fester as Turkish officials disputed a U.S. account of how the crisis was resolved.
The U.S. Embassy in Ankara posted a notice on its website saying full visa service was resuming because the Turkish government had provided “assurances” that its local employees would not be arrested for actions related to their jobs. It also said Turkey promised to alert the embassy if any other Turkish employees face arrest.
A few hours later, the Turkish Embassy in Washington posted its own explanation, saying it, too, was restoring visas in a gesture of reciprocity. But it insisted it gave no such guarantees.
“It is inappropriate to misinform the Turkish and American public that such assurances were provided,” it said.
The visa crisis began in October when U.S. missions in Turkey stopped issuing most visas after a Turkish employee of the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul was detained for alleged links to Fethullah Gulen, a Pennsylvania-based cleric whom Ankara blames for a coup attempt in 2016. Turkey retaliated in kind.
-snip-
By Carol Morello and Erin Cunningham December 28 at 3:16 PM
The United States and Turkey announced Thursday an end to visa restrictions that have affected thousands of travelers, but tensions continued to fester as Turkish officials disputed a U.S. account of how the crisis was resolved.
The U.S. Embassy in Ankara posted a notice on its website saying full visa service was resuming because the Turkish government had provided “assurances” that its local employees would not be arrested for actions related to their jobs. It also said Turkey promised to alert the embassy if any other Turkish employees face arrest.
A few hours later, the Turkish Embassy in Washington posted its own explanation, saying it, too, was restoring visas in a gesture of reciprocity. But it insisted it gave no such guarantees.
“It is inappropriate to misinform the Turkish and American public that such assurances were provided,” it said.
The visa crisis began in October when U.S. missions in Turkey stopped issuing most visas after a Turkish employee of the U.S. Consulate in Istanbul was detained for alleged links to Fethullah Gulen, a Pennsylvania-based cleric whom Ankara blames for a coup attempt in 2016. Turkey retaliated in kind.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-and-turkey-visa-crisis-ends-after-three-month-standoff/2017/12/28/2643d8a6-ebec-11e7-8a6a-80acf0774e64_story.html
