US embassy denies risk to Turkey's NATO membership

The US embassy in Ankara on Monday rejected reports which said US Secretary of State John Kerry had warned Turkey that its NATO membership was at stake over its post-coup crackdown, Daily Sabah reported.

The Washington Post had published a story in which John Kerry was "cautioning that Turkey's Nato membership could be jeopardised if it abandons democratic principles and the rule of law in a post-coup crackdown."

Several Western news outlets including Voice of America News, The Independent and Portland Press Herald later carried the same story.

Most of the websites later changed their headlines after the denial was issued by the US embassy in Ankara.

During a press conference Kerry had said, "The US will certainly support bringing the perpetrators of the coup to justice."

He added, "but we also caution against a reach that goes beyond that and stress the importance of the democratic rule being upheld."

US State Department spokesman John Kirby later said that while NATO will be watching Turkey carefully, "it's too soon to say that their membership is at risk," according to the Washington Post .

Following a failed coup attempt on Friday night, which claimed more than 200 lives, a total of 8,777 personnel have been dismissed from their duties.

Those dismissed include 30 governors, 52 civil inspectors, and 16 legal advisers, the Interior Ministry said.