In a letter addressed to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Sen. Sam Brownback mentioned the reasons that urged him to place a hold on Frank Ricciardone’s nomination, Asbarez reported. Sam Brownback noted that Ricciardone is not “the right Ambassador for Turkey at this time-despite his extensive diplomatic experience.”

“My concerns about Ricciardone’s work on Iraq and Egypt lead me to similar concerns about his approach to a number of issues in our relationship with Turkey,” Sen. Brownback said. According to him, ruling AK Party “is moving away from its secularist roots.”

In his letter he did not touch upon the Armenian-Turkish relations. He also expressed concern that U.S. has not fully explored the possible consequences “of a Turkish tilt toward Iran and away from Israel.”