The Turkish Foreign Ministry has flatly ruled out the possibility of the involvement of any Turkish diplomats in corrupt relations with New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who has been indicted on five federal charges, saying its diplomats act in line with the relevant international treaties, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Öncü Keçeli released a statement on Saturday about the alleged involvement of a Turkish diplomat in New York in corrupt relations with Adams, who faces charges of bribery, wire fraud, conspiracy and soliciting campaign contributions from foreign nationals in a 57-page indictment unsealed last Thursday.
“Our representatives abroad perform their duties in accordance with the Vienna Convention and international diplomatic practices. It is out of the question for us to interfere with the internal affairs of any country,” Keçeli said in his statement.
The Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, signed in 1961, is an international treaty that defines a framework for diplomatic relations between independent countries and sets the principle of diplomatic immunity for diplomats to enable them perform their functions without fear of coercion or harassment by the host country.
According to the indictment, Adams received illegal donations and more than $100,000 worth of free plane tickets and luxury hotel stays from wealthy Turkish nationals and at least one government official — a Turkish diplomat in New York — in a nearly decade-long corruption scheme.
Adams and his staff are accused of disguising the foreign money donated to his election campaign by funneling it through US citizens, the indictment says. His campaign received more than $10 million in matching public funds as a result of the false certifications, according to the indictment.
There is mention of an unnamed Turkish diplomat in New York in the indictment, who is referred to more than 100 times as the “Turkish official.”
According to the indictment, since 2015 Adams has accepted free flights and upgrades arranged by the diplomat, who connected him with the national airline’s general manager for New York City that year.
The diplomat also arranged meetings with Turkish businessmen and facilitated many straw donations to Adams in addition to asking him to pressure the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) to facilitate the opening of a new Turkish consular building, a 36-story skyscraper, without a fire inspection in time for a high-profile visit by Turkey’s president.
The indictment said although the building, Turkish House (Türkevi), would have failed an FDNY inspection at the time, in exchange for free travel and other travel-related bribes in 2021 and 2022 arranged by the Turkish diplomat, Adams acted in line with the Turkish diplomat’s request. Because of Adams’s pressure on the FDNY, the FDNY official responsible for its assessment of the skyscraper’s fire safety was told that he would lose his job if he failed to acquiesce, and, after Adams intervened, the skyscraper opened as requested by the diplomat.
The indictment also includes excerpts from conversations between Adams and the Turkish diplomat, who called the mayor “a true friend of Turkey” due to his favors for Turks and Turkey.
Meanwhile, Adams, who appeared before a judge in Manhattan federal court on Friday, pleaded not guilty to the charges leveled against him.