Spotlight: U.S. court verdict against Turkish banker to worsen bilateral ties

ANKARA, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. court verdict that convicted a Turkish banker of evading Iran sanctions will further aggravate the already trouble-plagued ties between Washington and Ankara.

On Wednesday, a jury in New York found former state-owned Halkbank deputy chief executive officer Mehmet Hakan Atilla guilty of five charges related to conspiracy and bank fraud.

According to the ruling, Atilla's counts include violating U.S. sanctions against Iran and defrauding U.S. banks.

The Turkish government identified the verdict as a "plot" against Ankara, saying it is politically motivated to intervene in the domestic affairs of Turkey.

On Thursday, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag slammed the U.S. court verdict, saying it is "a case of political conspiracy."

"Turkey is a fully independent and sovereign country. No other country can adjudicate Turkey and Turkey's institutions," Bozdag said on his Twitter account, adding that this verdict was against international law as well.

Commenting on the alleged involvement of foreign parties in the case, Bozdag said the case stands as an example of the politically motivated collaboration between the Fethullahist Terror Organization (FETO), the CIA, the FBI and the U.S. government.

Turkey's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also said the ruling was an "unprecedented" intervention in Turkey's internal affairs.

The trial was based on the testimony of Turkish-Iranian businessman Reza Zarrab, who became a witness after pleading guilty for his involvement in gold-for-oil scheme to bypass U.S. economic sanctions against Iran.

Zarrab's testimony implicated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and former Turkish ministers in the multi-billion-dollar scheme.

Local lawyers point to the fact that the trial could pave the way for further accusations and lawsuits against other Turkish citizens.

"Some other chain trials could follow this case. Because many other names were expressed during the trial," lawyer Huseyin Ersoz said.

In his testimony, Zarrab said he was told that Erdogan and former Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan had given "instructions" to two public banks to take part in the scheme to bypass U.S. sanctions against Iran.

Zarrab said he paid tens of millions of dollars' worth of bribes to former Economy Minister Zafer Caglayan.

In a statement issued after the verdict, Halkbank said it always adheres to national and international regulations in all its business and transactions.

However, Local media suggest that the Turkish government is bracing for the possibility that Turkish banks could be hit by fines over the case.

"Turkey is integrated into the international banking system and Ankara could prefer reconciliation for not to be subject to an embargo on its international banking capacity," said Abdulkadir Selvi, a daily Hurriyet commentator.

France, Germany, the Netherlands and Britain were subject to this kind of fines for doing business with U.S.-sanctioned entities.

For instance, France's BNP Paribas agreed to a record 9-billion-dollar settlement with U.S. prosecutors over allegations of breaking U.S. sanctions against trade with Sudan, Iran and Cuba. Enditem