Turkey's spat with 10 countries eases

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's threat to expel 10 Western ambassadors who had called for the release of a jailed civil society leader appeared to have receded on Monday.

Erdogan on Saturday said he wanted to see the ambassadors of the United States, Germany, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden to be declared "persona non grata" and forced to leave the country.

He was incensed by a joint statement the countries issued on October 18 that called for philanthropist Osman Kavala be set free, describing it as inappropriate meddling in Turkish affairs.

The US Embassy in Ankara on Monday tweeted one sentence on the spat: "In response to questions regarding the Statement of October 18, the United States notes that it maintains compliance with Article 41 of Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations."

Canada, New Zealand and the Netherlands also posted nearly the exact same statement. Germany and France retweeted the US embassy's tweet.

Article 41 says diplomats operating in foreign countries should not interfere in the internal affairs of the state they are in.

The tweets, however brief, seemed to be enough.

Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency took them as a concession, tweeting in turn: "The US Embassy in Ankara has given in." It went on to report that Erdogan welcomed the tweets.

Kavala is the founder of the NGO Anadolu Kultur, which promotes exchange and dialogue between Turkey and its neighbours through cultural and artistic works.

Accused of espionage and attempting to overthrow the government through 2013 Gezi protests, Kavala denies all charges but could face life imprisonment if convicted.