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State Department: We are not currently confirming a visit by Anthony Blinken to Turkey

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The American Foreign Minister will visit Munich on February 19 and on the 20th and 21st he will travel to Greece

The US is not confirming that there is currently any planned visit by Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to Turkey, the State Department said. “Regarding your question about the minister’s trip, we don’t have any trip to confirm at this time,” the US Department spokesman replied to a question from Greek correspondents about the information they want Anthony Blinken to visit the neighboring country. It is recalled that the visit of the American Foreign Minister to Munich will end on February 19 and then he will travel to Greece between February 20 and 21.

The representative of the State Department was also placed on the verbal episode that occurred between the Turkish Minister of the Interior, Suleiman Soylu, and the American Ambassador, Jeffrey Flake, categorically rejecting the accusations made by the Turkish Minister. As he emphasized, “any suggestion that the United States government is complicit in or supporting efforts to destabilize Turkey is false. Turkey is a long-standing and valuable NATO ally and US security partner.”

The incident was prompted by the State Department’s travel advisory for Turkey, which warned American citizens of possible terrorist acts after copies of the Koran were burned in Sweden and Denmark during anti-Turkish protests. These protests led the US along with eight European countries to take action by issuing travel advisories or temporarily closing their embassies and consulates.

The specific travel instructions caused the intense discomfort of Mr. Soylou, who verbally attacked the American ambassador during an event in Antalya. “Get your stinking hands off Turkey. I am very clear. I know very well how you would like to create animosity in Turkey. Wipe off your big smile and keep it away from Turkey,” Mr. Soylou said to Jeffrey Flake. In fact, the Turkish minister also accused the American embassies in Europe of coordinating to control the continent.

The State Department’s response also states that “the U.S. State Department has no higher priority than the protection and safety of American citizens abroad” and “U.S. embassies and consulates abroad issue alerts to warn American citizens of specific events and changes happening locally, in real time. This is done without regard to bilateral political or economic factors.”

RES-EMP

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