TURKISH AND AMERICAN DIPLOMATS GET IN A ROW DURING CLINTON-ERDOGAN MEETING
Tert.am
16:31 â~@¢ 15.02.10
A meeting between US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Turkey’s
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Qatar was overshadowed by a
scandal between the Turkish and American diplomats.
According to Turkish daily Today’s Zaman, that Clinton-Erdogan meeting
lasted about an hour instead of 20 minutes as previously planned.
During the meeting, US Ambassador to Qatar Joseph LeBaron, saying
that Clinton is running late for a planned meeting with Sheikh Hamad
bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Emir of the State of Qatar, tried to enter
the room where Clinton and Erdogan were meeting.
"Clinton’s meeting with Qatar’s emir is more important than the
meeting with the Turkish delegation," LeBaron was reported as saying.
The American diplomat was countered by Fuat Tanlay, advisor on foreign
affairs to Turkey’s Prime Minister: "Your are not allowed to speak
about Turkey and Turkey’s prime minister that way. You will have to
wait till the end of the meeting."
According to Today’s Zaman, after this altercation, Erdogan’s bodyguard
asked Joseph LeBaron to step away from the meeting room door.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
