“The United States will impose large sanctions on Turkey for their long time detainment of Pastor Andrew Brunson, a great Christian, family man and wonderful human being. He is suffering greatly. This innocent man of faith should be released immediately!” he tweeted on Thursday.
Turkey's foreign minister responded with a tweet of his own.
"Noone dictates Turkey. We will never tolerate threats from anybody. Rule of law is for everyone; no exception," tweeted Mevlut Cavusoglu.
Brunson, who has lived in Turkey for 23 years, was first detained in 2016 following the failed military coup. He was charged and arrested in October 2017 for being a member of the Gulen movement. He was later slapped with additional charges of espionage and for speaking in favor of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
He was moved out of jail on Wednesday and put under house arrest – a US Vice President Mike Pence said was “a welcome first step, but it is not good enough.”
Speaking at the first ever Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom in Washington on Thursday, Pence described Brunson as a “victim of persecution.”
“Pastor Andrew Brunson is an innocent man. There is no credible evidence against him. Our entire administration has worked tirelessly to secure Pastor Brunson’s release,” said Pence, vowing that the Trump administration would not give up until Brunson is back in the United States.
Delivering a message to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on behalf of Trump, Pence said, “Release Pastor Andrew Brunson now or be prepared to face the consequences.”
He threatened “significant sanctions” against Turkey if Ankara does not take immediate action, without going into detail.
The US and Turkey have been trying to mend relations strained over matters like Brunson and US support for Kurdish forces in northern Syria, which Ankara considers a terror group.
They have formed a working group to resolve their problems.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry said Thursday’s statements from the Whitehouse “totally disregard our alliance and friendly relations between our countries.”
“We invite the US Administration to leave aside this wrongful rhetoric and come back to the existing framework of constructive dialogue that we have been engaged in so far,” read a statement from the ministry’s spokesperson Hami Aksoy.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Johannesburg on Thursday evening.
“Any kind of solidarity with Russia makes someone jealous,” he said after the meeting, according to Anadolu Agency, in what appears to be a subtle dig at Trump who is under fire at home for his own meeting with Putin earlier this “Any kind of solidarity with Russia makes someone jealous,” he said after the meeting, according to Anadolu Agency, in what appears to be a subtle dig at Trump who is under fire at home for his own meeting with Putin earlier this month.
Cavusoglu and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke by phone on Thursday and are expected to hold talks, Reuters reported.
Updated at 10:13 pm
