Turkey says lifting restrictions on visa services for U.S. citizens

ANKARA: The Turkish Embassy in Washington said on Thursday it had lifted restrictions on visa services for U.S. citizens, responding to a move by the U.S. Embassy in Ankara to end a months-long visa row between the NATO allies.

Earlier on Thursday, the U.S. Embassy had said it would resume all visa services after Turkey had fulfilled high-level assurances on detained local U.S. Embassy personnel. The Turkish Embassy, however, said it had provided no such assurances.

"Despite having been addressed earlier, we do not find it right for the United States to claim it had received assurances from Turkey and misinform U.S. and Turkish publics," the Turkish Embassy said in a statement, adding it had serious concerns regarding the cases of Turkish nationals in the United States.