October 24, 2017

*ABOUT*
A growing number of western nationals have been imprisoned in Turkey since the 2016 failed coup attempt, raising serious concerns over Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s “hostage diplomacy” — using Western nationals as bargaining chips to extract concessions from NATO allies. Erdogan’s recent proposal to swap imprisoned U.S. Pastor Andrew Brunson with U.S.-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara accuses of masterminding the abortive coup is perhaps the most well-known example of this. But it also echoes similar reports from this summer involving German nationals. Meanwhile, Ankara arrested a second U.S. consulate employee this month, prompting Washington to suspend visa services in Turkey. How will all of this affect Turkey’s relations with the U.S. and other NATO allies? How should the U.S. respond?

This event featured Amb. Eric Edelman, former Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, former U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, and FDD Senior Advisor; Dr. Aykan Erdemir, former Member of Turkish Parliament and Senior Fellow at FDD; and Dr. Lisel Hintz, Assistant Professor of International Relations and European Studies at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. Dion Nissenbaum, national security reporter for The Wall Street Journal, moderated the discussion. Clifford D. May, FDD President and United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) Commissioner, provided opening remarks.

*MORE*
https://www.fdd.org/events/2017/10/24/u-s-turkish-relations-in-the-era-of-erdogans-hostage-diplomacy/
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