Pompeo warns Turkey clock has run out to release jailed US pastor

SINGAPORE — Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Friday that “the clock had run” out for the Turkish government’s imprisonment of Americans, including a pastor whose case has been a sore point between Ankara and Washington, and it is time to release them.

Speaking to reporters aboard his plane en route to Singapore from Malaysia, Pompeo said he planned to raise the matter during a meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on the sidelines of a conference of 27 Asian nations.

Pompeo’s three-day trip to Asia, including a stop at the ASEAN ministerial meeting in Singapore, is part of a U.S. effort to boost trade ties with the region, despite withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade agreement. Pompeo also plans to press for continued sanctions enforcement against North Korea.

Pompeo met with Cavusoglu immediately after arriving from Malaysia. A State Department description over their conversation only said they addressed a number of issues, during a “constructive” conversation.

The State Department has demanded Turkey release a number of American detainees, including Andrew Brunson, a pastor who has been detained almost two years, a Turkish-American NASA scientist and three locally-hired employees of the U.S. missions in Turkey.

“Brunson needs to come home,” Pompeo said he would tell Cavusoglu. “As do all the Americans that are being held by the Turkish government. It’s pretty straightforward. They’ve been holding these folks for a long time.

“These are innocent people,” he added. “Pastor Brunson is an innocent pastor and they need to let him return to the United States, and they need to let our locally employed folks — everyone needs to be let out. That’s the message. We are going to work to see if we can find a way forward — I am hopeful.”

[Trump and Erdogan square up for a fight]

Pompeo said the Turkish government is aware that U.S. patience with Turkey over the Brunson case is growing thin.

“The Turks were well on notice that the clock had run and that it was time for Pastor Brunson to be returned,” he said. “And I hope they’ll see this for what it is, a demonstration that we’re very serious. We consider this one of the many issues that we have with the Turks.”

Pompeo’s trip began with a meeting Friday with Malaysia’s newly elected leader, trying to promote U.S.-style development led by private-sector investment at a time when the government is reconsidering Chinese-financed projects favored by the previous ruling coalition.

In a speech in Washington on Monday, he reiterated the argument often made by Rex Tillerson, his predecessor, that China offers countries a poor deal because it primarily provides loans, while the United States gives a more sustainable alternative through direct aid and private investment.

Pompeo was the first senior U.S. official to visit Malaysia since surprise election results in May brought an opposition government to power pledging to tackle corruption. The election unseated decades of rule for the National Front coalition, in what has been heralded as one of the few and unexpected democratic victories in Southeast Asia.

He met with Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, a 93-year-old fiery politician who once again is leading Malaysia after a 22-year tenure as its helm from 1981 to 2003.

Mahathir led the opposition coalition that now governs Malaysia, partnering with politicians who were locked up under the government he had led previously. He ousted Najib Razak, once his protege, who Mahathir believed had become corrupt and had an unchecked hold on power. Najib is under investigation in connection with the disappearance of billions of dollars from the state investment fund.

Although Mahathir has long been a critic of the United States and the West — he has said that he is in no hurry to meet President Trump, labeling him volatile — analysts say that his return as Malaysia’s prime minister will benefit the nation’s relationship with the United States. Pompeo’s visit will allow the United States “to strengthen its relationship with Malaysia, unencumbered by Najib’s corruption,” said Ian Storey, a senior fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore.

“Secretary Pompeo is arriving in Kuala Lumpur with 2018 in mind,” said a senior State Department official traveling with Pompeo. “There’s a long history in both countries. We have a comprehensive partnership with many areas of cooperation.”

[Silk Road forum showcases China’s power — and its propaganda]

Malaysia’s new government takes a critical eye toward China’s state-backed projects, and that provides the United States with an opportunity.

Before his trip, Pompeo announced $113 million in direct government investment to the Asia-Pacific region focused on technology, energy and infrastructure. It is an answer to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, which has provided billions in funding for infrastructure and other big-ticket projects throughout the region.

The plan Pompeo announced will more than double the U.S. government’s development finance capacity, which could be provided as loans to private companies in the region.

Under Malaysia’s former government, China signed agreements for several infrastructure projects, including a rail and a pipeline. A number of these Chinese-backed projects — $23 billion worth — have now been suspended, as Mahathir’s government questions their value and tries to tackle Malaysia’s fiscal woes related to the corruption scandal.

Pompeo is in Singapore at the same time North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho, leading to speculation that the two may hold a private bilateral meeting to discuss stalled negotiations over Pyongyang’s nuclear program.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also will be in Singapore to sign a cooperation agreement with ASEAN, but State Department officials have played down the potential for any sideline talks with Pompeo.

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