Turkey's Erdogan says to re-evaluate upcoming U.S. visit, case against Halkbank ''illegal''

Record ID: 1436989

  • Title: Turkey's Erdogan says to re-evaluate upcoming U.S. visit, case against Halkbank ''illegal''
  • Date: 16th October 2019
  • Summary: DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF HALKBANK BRANCH HALKBANK SIGN CUSTOMERS AT ATM MACHINE HALKBANK ADVERTISING DISPLAY VARIOUS OF CUSTOMERS ATM MACHINE CUSTOMERS OUTSIDE THE BANK VARIOUS OF EXCHANGE MARKET DISPLAY SHOWING TURKISH CURRENCY EXCHANGE RATES CURRENCY COUNTER VARIOUS OF DOLLAR NOTES BEING COUNTED EXCHANGE OFFICE WORKER COUNTING DOLLAR NOTES BY HAND MORE OF DOLLAR CURRENCY NOTES BEING COUNTED BY MACHINE
  • Embargoed: 30th October 2019 12:03
  • Keywords: Tayyip Erdogan Turkey USA Halkbank Syria sanctions
  • Location: ANKARA , DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY
  • City: ANKARA , DIYARBAKIR, TURKEY
  • Country: Turkey
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
  • Reuters ID: LVA002B1CHLQF
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday (October 16) that he would decide whether to go ahead with a planned visit next month to the United States after meetings with an American delegation in Turkey this week.
    Speaking to reporters in parliament, Erdogan said he would re-evaluate the trip because "arguments, debates, conversations being held in Congress regarding my person, my family and my minister friends are a very big disrespect."
    Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump are due to meet in Washington on Nov. 13. Vice President Mike Pence is expected to meet Erdogan in Ankara on Thursday (October 17) to discuss Turkey's incursion in northern Syria.
    Separately, Erdogan also described Tuesday's move by U.S. prosecutors to charge Turkey's Halkbank with evading U.S. sanctions on Iran as an "unlawful, ugly step." The bank said on Wednesday that U.S. charges against it are part of sanctions Washington slapped on Ankara over its military incursion in Syria and represent an "unprecedented legal overreach."
    Turkey's second-largest state bank said it did not engage in sanctions violations as alleged and falls outside of the U.S. Justice Department's jurisdiction since it has no branches or employees in the United States.
    Before Turkish markets opened, authorities banned short selling on seven large Turkish bank stocks including Halkbank. Selling shares in the banks only to buy them later in the session was also banned, authorities said.
    State banks - which have sold dollars to defend the lira since the Syria incursion began last week - were on Wednesday squeezing funding in an offshore FX swaps market to cushion the blow from the Halkbank indictment, a bond trader said.
    Halkbank stock nonetheless fell as much as 7.2% at the open and was down 4.8% at 0939 GMT.
    (Production: Omer Berberoglu, Yesim Dikmen)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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