Turkey rejects US lawmakers' resolution against guards' violence in DC

Turkey's Foreign Ministry has rejected a resolution by senior US lawmakers which condemns the Turkish security forces' violent reaction to a protest outside the Turkish ambassador's residence in Washington.

Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Huseyin Muftuoglu denounced the "one-sided resolution which distorts the facts," and noted that the incident was caused as a result of negligence by US authorities.    

On Thursday, US lawmakers at the House of Representatives passed a resolution to officially condemn the Turkish forces’ violent reaction to the "peaceful protest" and called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice.

The resolution was co-sponsored by the leaders of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and top Republican and Democratic House leaders.

Two Turkish guards were briefly arrested on May 16, after a melee broke out outside the residence of the Turkish ambassador in Washington during the visit of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the US. The guards had been filmed hitting and kicking protesters in the area while Erdogan was watching the scene. The two were later released and returned to Turkey.

"The incident that took place in front of the Turkish ambassador’s residence during the visit of President Erdogan to Washington, D.C., was caused as a result of the refusal of US authorities to take necessary security measures, despite repeated official warnings," Muftuoglu said.

On May 22, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it had submitted a "written and verbal protest" to US Ambassador John Bass over the treatment of the two security officers.

It claimed the two officers were part of Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's security escort, saying the way they were treated was "contrary to diplomatic rules and practices." The statement said the US authorities had been requested to conduct a “full investigation” into the “diplomatic incident” and provide the necessary explanation.

US officials had summoned the Turkish envoy to voice concerns about the altercation amid increasing calls for strong action against the Turkish officers.

Read more:

• Turkey summons US envoy over guards

Turkey and the US have been at odds over the developments in Syria, where Washington has been supporting Kurdish militias fighting the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group. Turkey sees the Kurdish forces as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants, who have been operating inside Turkey for decades.

Turkey has also criticized the US for not extraditing Fethullah Gulen, a cleric who is accused by Ankara of having orchestrated a failed coup last year. More than 100,000 have been arrested or discharged from their jobs over alleged links to Gulen and his network. Gulen, who lives in Pennsylvania, has denied any involvement in the July 15 coup that left more than 250 people dead.

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