CAIRO — Egypt announced Saturday that it was downgrading its diplomatic relations with Turkey and expelled the Turkish ambassador because of “provocative” criticisms of Cairo by Turkey’s prime minister, a spokesman for Egypt’s foreign minister said.
Egypt also said its ambassador to Turkey, who was withdrawn in August, would be permanently recalled, all but severing relations with a regional heavyweight that had been one of Egypt’s most prominent allies before the ouster of President Mohammed Morsi in July.
In retaliation, Turkey declared the absent Egyptian ambassador “persona non grata” and also downgraded diplomatic relations.
Turkey’s prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was unapologetic, calling Egypt’s government a “pro-coup administration” and saying “we never respect those who do not respect people’s right to sovereignty.”
Ties between the two countries had been fraying for months. Erdogan had cultivated a strong relationship with Morsi, a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, as part of Erdogan’s wider bid for regional leadership anchored by support for Islamist allies.
After Morsi’s ouster and arrest by the military, Erdogan became one of the most vocal foreign critics of the crackdown on the Brotherhood, angering Egyptian officials by expressing solidarity with protesters and criticizing the arrests of senior Brotherhood leaders.
Erdogan’s comments on Thursday were the last straw, according to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Badr Abdel Aty, citing statements in support of Morsi and his criticism of the former president’s trial on murder charges.
Egypt said it was not completely severing ties between the countries, but downgrading the relationship to the level of chargé d’affaires. It was a further sign of the country’s rapidly shifting foreign policy since the military takeover, as officials have pursued new alliances and lashed out at old friends who have voiced any criticism.
Egypt’s relations with the United States, its closest Western ally, were troubled for months after the Obama administration spoke out against the violent suppression of Morsi’s supporters, including the killing of hundreds of protesters by Egypt’s security services.
The frosty relations led Cairo to rekindle a friendship with Russia, in what was seen as a swipe at the United States. Egypt’s isolation has further eased, as the Obama administration’s own internal feuds about its Egypt policy have come out into the open.
In a departure from the administration’s earlier, critical statements, Secretary of State John Kerry has taken to flattering Egypt’s interim leaders and denigrating the Brotherhood.