Turkey Calls New York Court Ruling Against Halkbank Executive a 'Legal Scandal'

In response to the conviction of Halkbank's executive in a New York court, Turkey labeled the ruling a 'legal scandal.' On Wednesday, January 3, Mohammad Hakan Atilla, the deputy general manager of Halkbank, was found guilty on five charges, accused of circumventing U.S. sanctions against Iran. In reaction to this ruling, Bekir Bozdağ, Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister, referred to the court as a 'political conspiracy' that 'holds no legal value for Turkey.' Bozdağ stated that Turkey is a country with complete sovereignty and that no country can put its institutions on trial. Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman for President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, also reacted to the court's decision regarding Atilla, stating, 'This is a disgraceful ruling from a disgraceful court.' The Turkish Foreign Ministry accused the U.S. of providing the New York court with forged documents and evidence from individuals close to Fethullah Gülen, whom Turkey blames for the failed coup attempt in 2016. Concurrently with Atilla's trial, Reza Zarrab faced similar charges in New York. While Atilla has denied the charges, Zarrab admitted in court that he had collaborated with the Halkbank executive. Zarrab claimed that 'Ziraat Bank' and 'VakıfBank' played roles in circumventing Iran's sanctions and that several high-ranking Turkish officials received large bribes for bypassing these sanctions. He stated that he had paid $50 million in bribes to former Turkish Economy Minister Mehmet Zafer Çağlayan for the transfer of gold from Iran. He also mentioned that Iran's oil and gas money was converted to gold through Halkbank and then sent to Dubai for sale and conversion to cash. In the case of violating Iran's sanctions, nine individuals were indicted by the U.S. prosecutor's office, with Zarrab and Atilla being among those detained in the U.S. The trials of Zarrab and Atilla have dealt another blow to Ankara-Washington relations.