MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th November, 2020) Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu had a phone call with NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg on Thursday, slamming European allies' attempted inspection of a Turkish vessel near Libya.
The talks were held in the run-up to NATO foreign ministers' meeting, slated for December 1-2.
"Discussed preparations for next week's Foreign Ministers Meeting w/@NATO SG @jensstoltenberg. Emphasized that forceful boarding to our ship is unacceptable. Evaluated recent developments in Eastern Mediterranean, Afghanistan, Libya & Nagorno Karabagh," Cavusoglu tweeted.
Turkey's cargo vessel Rosaline-A was stopped on Sunday by Germany's frigate Hamburg approximately 124 miles to the north of Benghazi as part of EU anti-arms smuggling operation IRINI. The German forces, however, are said to have been unable to inspect the vessel because of the protest by Ankara.
The Italian ambassador and the German charge d'affaires have been summoned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry in connection with the incident.
