White House Condemns Erdogan’s Anti-Israel Comments

John Tackeff — March 1, 2013 – 12:31 pm | Barack Obama | Israel Comments (0) Add a comment

In response to his highly offensive comments that compared Zionism to a as “crime against humanity,” the White House blasted Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in a statement provided to Reuters:

“We reject Prime Minister Erdogan’s characterization of Zionism as a crime against humanity, which is offensive and wrong,” White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said in a statement.

“We encourage people of all faiths, cultures, and ideas to denounce hateful actions and to overcome the differences of our times,” he said.

While speaking in Turkey today, Reuters reported that Secretary of State John Kerry also took Prime Minister Erdoğan to task for his comments:

“We not only disagree with it, we found it objectionable,” Kerry told a news conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, saying he raised the issue directly with Davutoglu and would do so with Erdogan.

“That said, Turkey and Israel are both vital allies of the United States and we want to see them work together in order to be able to go beyond the rhetoric and begin to take concrete steps to change this relationship,” Kerry added.

It had been earlier reported by the Times of Israel that Secretary Kerry would take Prime Minister Erdogan to task for his offensive statements:

As Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan drew sharp criticism Friday for comments equating Zionism to a crime against humanity at a UN meeting promoting dialogue between faiths, a US official said Secretary of State John Kerry would take Erdoğan to task for the “particularly offensive” remark during his upcoming visit to Ankara.

In addition to the statements above, a Senior State Department Aide criticized the remarks as Secretary Kerry flew to Ankara in a comment provided to Reuters:

“This was particularly offensive, frankly, to call Zionism a crime against humanity ... It does have a corrosive effect [on relations],” a senior US official told reporters as Kerry flew to Ankara.

“I am sure the secretary will be very clear about how dismayed we were to hear it,” the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said.

 

Comments

There are no comments for this entry