Ankara - Anadolu
Turkey\'s Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek has said, \"If The Guardian\'s spying claims are confirmed, then we will strongly condemn it and do all what is necessary.\" Minister Simsek released a written statement in regards to the news article of a British newspaper, The Guardian\'s spying claims on him back in 2009. Simsek said, \"We are in touch with the Turkish Foreign Ministry. They are investigating it. If The Guardian\'s claims are confirmed, then we will strongly condemn it and do all what is necessary.\" The Guardian published that Britain had spied on Turkish Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek in 2009 as he was in London to attend the G20 Summit, According to the news report of the British newspaper, The Guardian, Finance Minister Simsek was spied by GCHQ, one of the three UK intelligence agencies while he was in capital London to attend the G20 Summit in 2009. The newspaper referred to the report of GCHQ and said, \"On the contrary, the top-secret document about a G20 finance ministers\' meeting in London starting on September 2, 2009 makes clear that the wiretappers\' \'reporting requirements\' were to find out nothing more than Ankara\'s attitudes to financial regulation and reform.\" Furthermore, the British paper added, the 2009 surveillance of the Turkish finance minister, and the possible targeting of up to 15 members of his delegation to London was also placed to make sure \"Turkish \'willingness (or not) to co-operate with the rest of the G20 nations\'.\" The Guardian article reminded that strategic partnership agreement was signed between Turkey\'s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Gordon Brown who was the Prime Minister of the UK in 2009 and drew attentions to the good relationship between the two countries. Meanwhile, The Guardian published that intelligence agency GCHQ decided to track the communications network of South African Foreign Ministry in 2005 closely.