Turkey "doesn't care" what the Council of Europe says about the imprisonment of Osman Kavala, a businessperson and a rights advocate, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said.

 

The CoE Committee of Ministers yesterday (February 2) launched infringement proceedings against Turkey because of refusing to release Kavala despite an ECtHR verdict in late 2019.

 

"We don't care what the ECtHR said or what the Council of Europe said. We expect our courts to be respected," Erdoğan told reporters at the Esenboğa airport in Ankara, the capital, before taking off for Ukraine.

 

With the infringement proceedings started, the ECtHR will now decide whether Ankara has abided by its ruling and fulfilled its obligations as a party to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

 

If Turkey is found to be in violation, the committee will decide on what sanctions will be imposed on it.