Addressing a press briefing Tuesday, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic said: "Following Biden's remarks, both the White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest and Biden's Press Secretary Kendra Barkoff had issued statements admitting that Biden apologized, and this issue has been widely covered in the media afterwards."
Bilgic added it would not be correct to make any further comments on this issue.
"I don't think this will create any problems during Biden's visit," he said.
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden had denied in an interview with CNN Monday he apologized to Ankara for his statement about Turkey helping the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or the ISIL and other militant groups in Syria.
"I never apologized to [Turkish President Erdogan]," Biden said. "I know him well. I've dealt with him. I called him and said, 'Look, what was reported was not accurate to what I said. Here's what I said.'"...............http://www.aa.com.tr/en/news/415268--turkey-biden-s-apology-denial-not-to-undermine-visit4/11/14
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Confusion grows over US VP Biden's words to Erdoğan, as White House denies denial ...
ReplyDeleteThe muddle over U.S. Vice President Joe Biden’s remarks about Turkey has been further complicated, after a White House spokesman contradicted Biden’s denial that he apologized to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan over the issue.
Biden denied apologizing to Ankara for his statement about Turkey helping the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and other militant groups in Syria on the night of Nov. 3, despite a previous White House statement that claimed the opposite.
The vice president recently confirmed that he spoke on the phone with Erdoğan, who reacted to his remarks furiously, but claimed he never apologized.
Further complicating the debate, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest, once again made another puzzling remark, saying a statement from Biden’s office at the time of the conversation certainly indicated an apology.
“I obviously didn’t listen in on the phone call between the vice president and President Erdoğan, but there’s a statement that was put out from the vice president’s office that reflected what I had related as well,” he said.
Earnest, however, defended Biden’s position, saying the vice president was trying to make the point that the message he delivered at Harvard University, specifically to Erdoğan, related to his regret about the way his comments were interpreted.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/confusion-grows-over-us-vp-bidens-words-to-erdogan-as-white-house-denies-denial.aspx?pageID=238&nID=73919&NewsCatID=359
5/11/14