Erdogan and the Turkish media have been adamantly blaming Fethullah Gulen for the assassination of the Russian Ambassador yesterday in Ankara. But Russia came out this morning and said it’s too early to say who is responsible:
The Kremlin said on Wednesday it was too early to say who masterminded the murder of Russia’s ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, who was shot dead by a Turkish police officer at an Ankara art gallery on Monday.
The Kremlin’s announcement has contradicted remarks by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, who told his US counterpart, John Kerry, during a phone conversation on Tuesday that both Russia and Turkey “know” the followers of the Gülen movement were behind the murder.
When Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was asked about the Turkish foreign minister’s comments on Wednesday, he said it was too early to draw any conclusions about who may have orchestrated the murder.
“We need to wait for the results of the joint investigative group,” Peskov told reporters on a conference call. “It is really not worth rushing to any conclusions.”
Not only that but Russia is now making comments that won’t sit well with Erdogan, claiming that Turkey has lost some of its prestige because of this and that this assassination is an attack Russia itself:
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said the murder of Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov by a gunman in Ankara on Monday evening is a blow to the prestige of Turkey.
“This, of course, is a blow in the sense of the country’s prestige. Because, as you know, any country bears responsibility for ensuring the security of diplomatic missions and diplomatic representatives on their territory,” Peskov told the MIR television station in an interview on Wednesday.
According to Peskov, an attack against an ambassador is an attack against the country.
Erdogan is already challenging Russia’s suggestion that it’s too early to tell:
In an open challenge to Moscow’s statement that it is too early to say who masterminded the murder of Russia’s ambassador to Turkey, Andrei Karlov, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Wednesday that the assassin is obviously a member of “FETÖ,” a derogatory term coined by the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government to refer to members of the Gülen movement.
“The assassin of the Russian ambassador is obviously a member of FETÖ. There is no need to hide it,” said Erdoğan during a press conference with Albanian President Bujar Nishani in Ankara.
Erdogan and his media are so quick to blame Gulen, it’s clear they are trying to put pressure on Obama to extradite gulen to Turkey so Erdogan can kill his greatest enemy.
I’m just glad Putin isn’t falling for this, at least up front.