October 23, 2013 | Quote
Reports: U.S. Cancels Drone Sales to Turkey Over Intel Disclosure to Iran
The United States has reportedly cancelled the delivery of 10 unmanned Predator drones to Turkey following Ankara’s disclosure of several Israeli intelligence officials operating in Iran, according to Turkish press reports.
The cancellation of these drones would be another setback for U.S.-Turkey relations, which have cooled in recent months as Ankara grows closer to Hamas and the Iranian regime.
Relations between Turkey and the West hit another speed bump last week when it came to light that Ankara had exposed the identities of up to 10 Iranians working on behalf of the Israelis in 2012.
…
“The overall trend is disturbing,” said Jonathan Schanzer, a former terrorism finance analyst at the U.S. Treasury Department. “From helping Iran evade sanctions to burning Israeli assets that were working to undermine Iran’s nuclear program to supporting Hamas and even allowing Hamas operatives on Turkish soil, Turkey is in danger of qualifying as a state sponsor of terror.”
“Recently it has also become clear that Turkey has failed to uphold its international obligations to maintain adequate counter terror finance laws and to enforce them,” Schanzer said. “This raises additional troubling questions about their role to fight terrorism both at home and abroad.”