Switzerland: Turkish FM's visit not a security threat

By Fatih Erel

GENEVA

The Swiss Foreign Ministry said Thursday there was no particularly high security threat ahead of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's visit to Zurich this coming Sunday.

"No exceptional security threat justifying restrictions on freedom of expression," the Swiss Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

"The visit by the Turkish foreign minister to Zurich on Sunday does not currently pose a particularly high security threat to Switzerland’s internal security. There are no grounds for forbidding the visit," the ministry added.

Earlier on Thursday, the Zurich Council of State had expressed concerns over security ahead of Cavusoglu's visit and the Zurich security department requested to cancel the event.