White House: Trump Has Not Made a Commitment for Gulen's Extradition

On Tuesday, December 18, Sarah Sanders, the White House spokesperson, stated that Donald Trump, the President of the United States, during his conversation with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the President of Turkey, mentioned that Washington is ready to evaluate the possibility of extraditing Fethullah Gulen, but has made no 'commitment' regarding this matter. Erdogan accuses Gulen, a Turkish cleric residing in the U.S., of being the mastermind behind the failed coup attempt in Turkey in the summer of 2016. Gulen denies any involvement in the coup. Sanders said, 'The only thing (Trump) said was that he would consider this issue.' She added, 'Nothing more has been raised so far. No binding commitment regarding the process has been made.' Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu stated on Sunday that Trump and Erdogan are working on the issue of Gulen's extradition. Cavusoglu mentioned that Trump and Erdogan spoke on the sidelines of the G20 leaders' summit in Argentina. Meanwhile, another White House official emphasized on Monday that Trump made no commitment regarding Gulen's extradition to Erdogan during the summit in Argentina. The issue of Gulen's presence in the U.S. is one of the contentious points between Washington and Ankara. Last year, Gulen stated in an interview with 'Public Radio' that he would not protest a potential U.S. decision to extradite him to Turkey, but such an action would damage America's credibility. Nearly two and a half years after the failed coup in Turkey, arrests related to alleged connections with Gulen's network continue. Turkish media reported on Friday that over 200 military personnel were detained early that day on charges of connections with Gulen's network.