Germany wants ‘swift solution’ for lawyer detained in Turkey

BERLIN – Germany’s foreign minister says he’ll raise with his Turkish counterpart the issue of a lawyer retained by the Germany embassy in Ankara who was arrested two months ago.

Heiko Maas said Friday that Germany wants a “swift solution” and he plans to speak to Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu about it on the sidelines of a G-20 meeting in Japan.

Speaking to reporters during a stop in Hiroshima, Maas said the arrest was “in no way comprehensible.”

German officials are concerned that the lawyer, who was arrested mid-September, had sensitive documents on Turkish citizens seeking asylum in Germany that may now be in the hands of authorities in Turkey.

Germany’s ambassador in Turkey, Martin Erdmann, said this week the embassy is “working hard to clarify the allegations” against the lawyer.