Speaking on a Turkish broadcast recently, Professor Ted Malloch, who is expected to be the U.S. ambassador to the EU, stirred many discussions.
Malloch's analyses regarding the future of the EU are also significant. He said that the future of the union does not seem very bright. But his words on Fetullah Gülen, the leader of the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) that attempted to stage a coup in Turkey on July 15, were far more striking.
Emphasizing the importance of Gülen's extradition, Malloch pointed out that he believes the new U.S. administration is likely to extradite Gülen in light of all the available data on the coup attempt.
This is exactly what Turkish people expect from the new U.S. administration with perseverance.
The allegations against Gülen, who still resides in Pennsylvania, and his shadowy illegal organization, were listed in indictments written as part of cases heard by independent Turkish courts.
Thousands of people in Turkey, including acquaintances and families of the 248 people who were killed during the coup attempt, turned to prosecution against this organization.
Also, hundreds of FETÖ militants were arrested and sentenced for their involvement in the unlawful and atrocious activities perpetrated by FETÖ.
However, for some reason, the U.S. administration disregards international law and diplomatic customary laws. Despite numerous extradition requests filed by Ankara, the U.S. resists extraditing Gülen to Turkey for trial.
This situation leads Turkish people to believe that the U.S. backed the July 15 coup attempt. Opinion research also indicates that the vast majority of Turkish people are of the same opinion.
Malloch said the following words regarding this approach of the U.S., which does not comply with an ally of Turkey:
"I think it was dismissed in the Obama period. Some allegations were made in that the organization is linked to the Clinton Foundation. But I think Gülen might be extradited in Trump's presidency," Malloch said, adding that the Turkish government must remind the Trump administration of this demand once again.
Malloch has a point. As the administration has changed, Turkey has been regularly updating its request filings with regard to the extradition of Gülen and other terrorists residing in the U.S.
Consequently, there is no pretext on this matter.
Trump must take a radical step to improve Turkey-U.S. relations, which are likely to be normalized following the end of the Obama period.
If the president has difficulty in convincing himself to make such a move, he must ask this question to himself and his electorate:
How would they act if Turkey, despite being an ally country, protected a terrorist who ordered the assassination of a U.S. president?
Turkish people now expect the new U.S. president to perform what is necessary in light of the facts expressed by Malloch.
