Trump declares 'no concessions' for Turkey

The US president said in an interview he is "saddened" by Ankara’s refusal to free an American pastor in a dispute that has exacerbated Turkey’s economic woes and threatened a decades-long alliance.
U.S. President Donald Trump answers a reporter's question as eight different phones and recording devices placed on his desk by reporters and White House staff members record his words during an interview with Reuters in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S. August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC1CEA11EEE0
US President Donald Trump answers a reporter's question as eight different phones and recording devices placed on his desk by reporters and White House staff members record his words during an interview with Reuters in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, US Aug. 20, 2018. - REUTERS/Leah Millis
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Ayla Jean Yackley
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Turkey and the United States remain on a collision course after President Donald Trump said he would not bargain with Ankara to win the release of a detained American pastor in a dispute that has pushed the countries’ strategic alliance to the brink and has roiled Turkey’s economy.

A war of words over Andrew Brunson, a 50-year-old evangelical church leader from North Carolina held by Turkey for nearly two years on terrorism charges, turned violent on Monday when gunmen opened fire on the US Embassy in Ankara. Turkish police arrested two men for carrying out the attack, in which no one was hurt.

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