US embassy officials brief Ankara on sanctions

Sevil Erkuş - ANKARA

U.S. embassy officials in Ankara visited the Turkish Foreign Ministry on Aug. 2 to brief them on the details of the sanctions declared on Turkey by the U.S. Treasury, diplomatic sources have told the Hürriyet Daily News. 

The U.S. imposed sanctions on two Turkish ministers on Aug. 1 in a new attempt to get NATO ally Turkey to hand over imprisoned U.S. pastor Andrew Brunson.

The U.S. Department of Treasury imposed sanctions on Justice Minister Abdülhamit Gül and Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu, saying the two led government institutions behind “serious human rights abuses.” The U.S. also blamed both for being involved in Brunson’s arrest and detention.

The U.S. sanctions will result in blocking any property or interest in property of both Gül and Soylu. U.S. citizens will also be generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.