The Trump administration levied sanctions against two top Turkish government officials Wednesday, fulfilling its pledge to punish Turkey for not releasing a detained American pastor and sending relations between the NATO allies to a new low. American pastor Andrew Brunson, right, has been accused by Turkey of complicity in a coup attempt. “We’ve seen no evidence that Pastor Brunson has done anything wrong, and we believe he is a victim of unfair and unjust detention by the government of Turkey,” Sanders said. President Trump concluded that these sanctions are the appropriate action.”State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters that the administration will continue its talks with Turkish officials even as the sanctions take effect. Trump has repeatedly lauded Erdogan as a strong leader and, after their meeting last month in Brussels, praised the Turkish president while criticizing other NATO leaders.

Source: Washington Post August 01, 2018 18:09 UTC