Giuliani: The U.S. is Willing to Negotiate with Turkey Regarding Reza Zarrab

Rudolph Giuliani, the former mayor of New York and legal advisor to Reza Zarrab, stated that senior U.S. officials are willing to act in favor of his client in this case in exchange for U.S. security interests. According to Reuters, Giuliani told a federal court in New York that given the nature of the crimes attributed to Zarrab and the importance of political relations between the two countries, Turkish and American officials are 'ready' for a diplomatic solution to this issue. Giuliani said, 'If we consider that none of Zarrab's transactions involved nuclear technology, weapons, or prohibited and smuggled items, and only included consumer goods, and Turkey is located in a very important strategic region, the readiness of officials from both countries is not surprising.' This affidavit was submitted a few days before a court hearing on Monday, where Zarrab will be informed that hiring Rudolph Giuliani, an advisor to Donald Trump, and Michael Mukasey, a former U.S. Attorney General, may create a conflict of interest in the examination of his case. The prosecution has warned about the potential for this conflict of interest because eight banks involved in this case have been clients of Giuliani's or Mukasey's law firm. The prosecution also reminds that Giuliani's law firm, known as Gibbons P.C., is recognized as the representative of the Turkish government. Reza Zarrab is accused of illegal currency transfers in the U.S. financial network and banks on behalf of Iran and violating U.S. sanctions against that country. The U.S. prosecution has also indicted Mehmet Hakan Atilla, a senior executive of Halkbank, a Turkish state bank, on similar charges. Both have denied the charges at this stage of the proceedings. This case has raised concerns at high levels of power in Turkey. Last month, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu described Atilla's arrest as 'political,' and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused U.S. authorities of having 'hidden motives' for prosecuting Zarrab. Both Giuliani and Mukasey, who has also submitted an affidavit to judicial authorities, claim they see no conflict of interest between their other activities and legal defense of Zarrab, but they have committed to not working for any of the banks involved in this case while representing Zarrab. Both emphasized that Zarrab personally pays for his legal defense costs.