US Secretary of State John Kerry is also expected to visit Turkey on August 21.
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A court in Istanbul has issued an arrest warrant for US-based Turkish cleric Fetullah Gulen.
A court in Turkey has issued a formal warrant for the arrest of Fethullah Gulen, who is accused by the Turkish government of being behind the failed coup on 15 July that left more than 270 people dead.
“I have repeatedly condemned the coup attempt in Turkey and denied any knowledge or involvement”.
Ankara has not yet made a formal extradition request, but the arrest warrant could be the prelude.
Steinmeier said he had last spoken with his Turkish counterpart on Friday and assured him that Germany did view the attempted coup as a serious matter, while insisting on the right to question whether its response had been appropriate.
“How can it be, when we are strategic partners… you keep on hiding and sheltering him?” CNN-Turk reported that he had admitted the exam leak.
So far, tens of thousands have been sacked, suspended or detained as part of the government crackdown on the coup plotters and those linked to Gulen.
The crisis in Turkey has erupted at a time when the Ankara-Washington relationship is as important as ever, with the USA needing Turkish help in the battle against Islamic State militants in Syria.
A rogue faction within the military tried to wrest control of the country on July 15, launching attacks on parliament and the president´s palace. At least 238 people were killed and almost 2,200 injured after people took to the streets and squares against the putschists. About 18,000 people have been detained or arrested, mostly from the military, on suspicion of being involved in the failed coup.
Erdogan on Thursday warned he would crack down on any firms linked to Gulen and his Hizmet movement, which promotes moderate Islam and runs a network of private schools in Turkey and the U.S., as well as a range of businesses, media outlets and cultural centres. “Maybe it is what they are most powerful at”, Erdogan said during a speech in Ankara, adding, “We are determined to totally cut off all business links of this organization, which has blood on its hands”.
“At the moment, those captured are just the tip of the iceberg, others continue working”.
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He also said “every cent” that goes to the movement of Fethullah Gulen ((FETO – Fetullah Terrorist Organization)) is “a bullet placed in the barrel to be fired against this nation”.
