
Turkey’s defense minister said on Friday his country had no plans to review its military base in Qatar and that any demand for its closure would represent interference in Ankara’s relations with the Gulf state.
ISTANBUL Turkey’s defense minister said on Friday his country had no plans to review its military base in Qatar and that any demand for its closure would represent interference in Ankara’s relations with the Gulf state.
Defense Minister Fikri Isik told broadcaster NTV that he had not seen a demand for the base to be shut. “The base in Qatar is both a Turkish base and one that will preserve the security of Qatar and the region,” Isik said in an interview.
Four Arab states boycotting Qatar over alleged support for terrorism have sent Doha a list of 13 demands including closing Al Jazeera television and reducing ties to their regional adversary Iran, an official of one of the four countries said.
(Reporting by Daren Butler and Can Sezer- Writing by Dominic Evans)
