UPDATE - 32 diplomats fail to return to Turkey following recall

UPDATES WITH MORE QUOTES FROM CAVUSOGLU, ZARIF

By Satuk Bugra Kutlugun

ANKARA (AA) – Dozens of diplomats have failed to answer recalls to Turkey in the wake of the July 15 defeated coup, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Friday.

Since the coup bid, the government has arrested or suspended tens of thousands of public employees suspected of links to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), which is accused of trying to overthrow the government.

Cavusoglu revealed at a news conference in Ankara that 208 Foreign Ministry staff had been recalled from posts around the world and 32 had failed to return “without permission”.

Speaking alongside his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif, Cavusoglu said two personnel based in Bangladesh had fled to the U.S. The remaining 30 had gone to a number of different countries, he added.

“Some of them escaped by sea, some of them escaped by air,” he said. “Some of them we have not confirmed their whereabouts. We will locate them shortly.”

The figure does not include two military attaches who left Athens for Italy last week.

As part of the investigation into the violent terror cult FETO, two ambassador-level diplomats -- Gurcan Balik and Tuncay Babali -- have been suspended.

Cavusoglu said a delegation from the U.S. Justice Department would visit Turkey on Aug. 23-24 to discuss the extradition of Fetullah Gulen, the Pennsylvania-based cleric accused of leading FETO and the coup plotters.

In a separate briefing, Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag said “four specialists” would make up the delegation.

“Of those, three are from [the U.S.] Department of Justice and one is from the State Department… Extradition of Fetullah Gulen is not just an issue for Turkey or the U.S., but an issue the world is closely watching out for," Bozdag said.

Cavusoglu, during the news conference, added that Vice President Joe Biden and Secretary of State John Kerry were also due to arrive in Turkey but the dates were yet to be confirmed.

- Energy cooperation -

Speaking during the news conference, Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said the Islamic Republic was "delighted" to see Turkey starting new cooperation with Russia.

"We are also ready to cooperate and help. These three countries [Russia, Iran and Turkey] should work together to bring peace and prosperity to the region," Zarif said.

Foreign Minister Zarif also said Iran and Turkey should increase cooperation on tourism.

"We are ready to facilitate the connections of electricity, natural gas and energy lines to Turkey and Europe," Zarif said. "We are ready to do business with Turkey in that field."

Zarif also mentioned the foiled coup attempt and hailed the Turkish people for being "a reason for the region's people to feel proud".

"I would like to congratulate the Turkish people for the resistance they put up against the putschists," Zarif said. "They showed the other people in the region that they would not let their democracy and their rights to be taken away from them."

Zarif said ties between Iran and Turkey are "strong and permanent", adding that past relations provide lots of business opportunities for the two sides.

- Syria -

Zarif, highlighting the Syria issue, said Iran "has always had positive dialogues with Turkey on the Syria subject".

"We also have great ties with Russia on the issue and we believe that all parties must cooperate to provide security, peace and stop conflicts," Zarif said.

Cavusoglu also said that Turkey and Iran are "on the same page" about Syria's territorial integrity adding that dialogue between the countries never stopped.

"We stress the importance of Iran's constructive role in providing a permanent solution in Syria from the beginning," Cavusoglu said. "We say the same thing today."

Cavusoglu also mentioned that Turkey did not see "any difference between the PKK, PYD and PJAK", adding that these terrorist groups are a security threat to Iran and Turkey.

"We need to fight against those together," Cavusoglu said. "We will strengthen our cooperation level to provide peace and a permanent solution in Syria."