Offended Turkey ASV statement to the US Secretary of State Maiks pompeo Ankara has called on Washington to better address racism and hate crimes in the United States.
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The State Department announced Tuesday that Pompeo will travel to Istanbul to meet with Bartholomew I, Patriarch of Constantinople, the spiritual leader of the Orthodox Church.
During his visit, Pompeo plans to discuss religious issues and reaffirm the United States’ strong support for religious freedom.
Turkey The Foreign Ministry called the US statement “extremely inappropriate” and stressed that Turkey defends the right of citizens to practice their faith freely.
The ministry said it would be more appropriate for the United States to “look in the mirror first” and address issues such as human rights abuses, racism, Islamophobia and hate crimes in its country.
The ministry said it had expressed its position to the United States and advised them to focus on promoting cooperation between the two countries on regional and global issues.
President of Turkey Regs Tajips Erdogans In July, was transformed into a mosque in Istanbul ‘s Hagia Sophia.
The Byzantine Orthodox Cathedral was turned into a mosque when Constantinople was occupied by the Ottoman Turks in 1453. In 1935, the founder of the secular Turkish state made it a museum.
In August, Erdogan decided to convert another Byzantine Orthodox church, the Church of Christ the Savior in the ensemble of Hora, into a mosque. After the fall of Constantinople, the church was transformed into a mosque, but for the last decade it was a museum.
Following these decisions, Erdogan was accused of trying to erase Orthodox cultural heritage in Turkey.
Turkey is also being pressured to rebuild the Orthodox Theological School, which closed in 1971.
Pompeo does not plan to meet with Turkish officials during his visit to Turkey.
After visiting Turkey, Pompeo is going to France, Georgia, Israel, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
The Pompeo trip will run from 13 November to 23 November.
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