Some Western countries’ closure of Istanbul consulates ‘deliberate’: Turkish foreign minister

ANKARA (AA) – Criticizing the recent closure of some Western consulates in Istanbul, Türkiye’s top diplomat has called the move “deliberate.”

He added that the countries involved had not shared any information about what they called “security reasons.”

“We think this was deliberate,” said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu about the closures. “This is exactly what we said by summoning the ambassadors to the ministry,” he told a news conference in Istanbul with his Argentine counterpart Santiago Cafiero.

Cavusoglu’s remarks came a day after Türkiye summoned ambassadors of Western countries, including the US, to criticize their decision to temporarily shut diplomatic missions and issue security alerts following recent incidents of desecration of the Islamic religious scripture in Europe.

The ambassadors of Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK were also summoned to the Foreign Ministry, according to Turkish diplomatic sources, adding that such simultaneous acts do not show a proportional and prudent approach. Instead, these only serve the “insidious agenda of terrorist groups.”

“Why did they close their doors?” asked Cavusoglu. “They say there’s a terrorist threat. Now if there’s a terrorist threat, shouldn’t they – especially if they are allies – tell us where this threat originated from?”

“They must share this information with us, that is, to our security units, to our intelligence units, and if there is such a threat, it must be eliminated before it turns into an attack.”

Those countries are not sharing “concrete” information and documents with Türkiye, he added.

On Thursday, Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu also criticized the closures, noting that they came just as Türkiye had announced promising tourism figures, and saying the unexplained closures constituted “psychological warfare.”

‘Türkiye stepped up measures to protect missions’

Cavusoglu also criticized countries that try to give the impression that Türkiye is unstable or that there is a ‘terrorist threat’ in Türkiye, saying: “This does not suit friendship or alliance.”

If they are trying to get the country into a difficult situation before the general elections (expected this May), Türkiye knows very well what is behind it, he added.

He also said the Interior Ministry has stepped up security measures for the diplomatic missions of some countries where incidents of desecration against the Islamic holy book took place.

“We’re already taking measures. We’re sensitive to these issues. Because our obligation is to protect these missions.

“But we also see some European countries that have nothing to do with this incident, and they are also closing (their consulates). In other words, we also know that some countries are telling others to join this closure action. We also have such information,” he added.