American broadcaster CBS News send a letter of apology to Turkey on Wednesday after portraying Istanbul and the Bosporus Straits as part of Greece in a news report on the Russia-Ukraine war.
“This graphic that incorrectly showed Istanbul as a part of Greece and not Turkey, was rectified once we were aware of the mistake,” the CBS channel administration said in the letter addressed to the Turkish Directorate of Communications, indicating that the news outlet would review its broadcasting processes to prevent such future errors.
Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun said Tuesday that Turkey is officially and openly protesting the mistake, according to a report in Daily Sabah.
In his rebuttal, he demanded that this mistake be corrected immediately and necessary explanations be made, Altun said, “It has been brought to my attention that in a news report by CBS News about the passage of Russian warships through Istanbul, the largest city in Turkey and which has been under the rule of the Turkish nation since 1453, looks like Greek territory.”
Underlining that the mistake made should not be repeated, Altun said, “We expect the necessary measures to be taken to avoid any step that could bring into question Turkey’s territorial integrity.”
Turkey bars warships passing through Istanbul’s Bosporus straits
Turkey barred warships from passing through key straits in a bid to de-escalate the Russia-Ukraine crisis on Monday.
The move came after Ukraine asked Turkey to activate a 90-year-old international pact that can be used to prevent Russian warships from entering the Black Sea through the Mediterranean.
Russia launched an incursion on Ukraine’s southern coast, via the Black Sea, as part of its invasion of Ukraine, but Turkey’s move also covers the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits which also connect the Aegean and Marmara.
Turkey’s Monday announcement declared that it was activating the Montreux Convention, warning both the Black Sea and non-Black Sea countries not to ply their warships through the Turkish waterways.
Under a 1936 pact, Turkey has the right to bar warships from using the Bosporus and Dardanelles during wartime.
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