Turkish deputy PM begins UK visit

LONDON

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş on Thursday met House of Commons leader David Lidington as part of his visit to the U.K.

Turkey's U.K. ambassador Abdurrahman Bilgic, his counterpart Richard Moore and Director General of Office of Public Diplomacy in Turkey Ali Osman Ozturk also attended the meeting at the British Parliament, sources told Anadolu Agency.

Kurtulmuş and Lidington discussed a wide range of issues, including the aftermath of the recent coup attempt in Turkey, peace talks on the Cyprus issue, developments in Syria and Ukraine and Turkey’s war on terror.

Kurtulmus stressed that Europe fails to understand the damage caused by the Terrorist Organization in Turkey but thanked the U.K. for its prompt response in the first days following the July 15 overthrow attempt.

Ankara has accused the terror leader of being the mastermind of the failed putsch.

Earlier in the day, Kurtulmus spoke at a reception held at the Yunus Emre Institute for Teachers’ Day, in which he the European Parliament’s decision to halt accession to the EU. “Turkey does not deserve or accept such a thing. This decision is null and void for us,” he said.

Kurtulmuş will continue meetings in London on Friday, including at Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs and will meet with representatives of the Turkish community.