New Congress targets Turkey
US lawmakers are still eyeing Turkey warily, even after it released US pastor Andrew Brunson.
Relations between Washington and Ankara temporarily thawed last year following the release of US pastor Andrew Brunson. But Congress is still putting Ankara on notice.
House Democrats voted mostly along party lines last week to pass a spending bill that hits Turkey with arms sales bans and sanctions. The bipartisan provisions originated in the Republican-held Senate last year but did not clear the House at the time.
For now, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is refusing to take up spending legislation that doesn’t fund President Donald Trump’s proposed border wall with Mexico. Still, lawmakers in both chambers are eyeing Ankara’s next moves as they weigh whether to move forward with the Turkey provisions again this year.
At issue is Turkey’s pending acquisition of Russia’s S-400 missile defense system and its continued detention of US citizens and locally employed consular staff.
