The reaction of the Foreign Ministry to the US report

The State Department has responded to the US State Department’s 2021 Country Terrorism Report.

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Ambassador Tanju Bilgic called on the United States to stand in solidarity with Turkey in a spirit of alliance and take a principled, consistent, determined and effective approach in the fight against terrorism.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Ambassador Tanju Bilgich gave a written response to the US State Department’s question about the 2021 Country Terrorism Report.

A spokesman for Bilgich said, “The 2021 State Department Terrorism Report deliberately misrepresents the fight against terrorist organizations that pose a direct threat to the security of our country.”

Stating that Turkey continues its fight against terrorist organizations, especially PKK/PYD/YPG, DHKP-C, FETÖ and DEAŞ, without any discrimination, based on the law, and effectively contributes to international efforts in this area, Bilgić said in the report: the so-called expansion of the PKK terrorist organization. He stated that the mention of the SDF as a partner of the United States in the fight against Daesh indicates that “the wrongfulness of using another terrorist organization in the fight against a terrorist organization has not yet been recognized by the US authorities.”

“We call for a decisive and effective approach”

Stressing that it would be “eccentric” in a report citing biased media reports to include claims that Turkey’s counter-terrorism operations against Syria and Iraq have resulted in civilian casualties, Bilgić said:

“The terrorist organization FETO, which was the instigator of the bloody coup attempt in our country in 2016 and was involved in criminal activities in all countries in which it is located, including the United States, has been exposed by the Turkish judicial system through judicial decisions based on concrete evidence. Therefore, it is unacceptable to describe in the report our fight against FETO members as politically motivated. We expect the US to end FETO’s presence and activities in its country as soon as possible.”

On the other hand, noting that the report’s inclusion of accusations based on “rumors and biased media reports” raises doubts about the seriousness of the report, Bilgich said, “We invite you to participate in the exhibition.” made statements.