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 The Pentagon said 670 dependents of U.S. military personnel would
be affected by the order to depart areas of southern Turkey,
including Incirlik air base, which is used heavily in the fight
against Islamic State militants.
The U.S. State Department said a small number of diplomatic families
would be affected but did not give numbers. The Pentagon said 100
military dependents in Ankara and Istanbul were not affected by the
departure orders because of security measures in place there.
State Department spokesman John Kirby said the move had been under
consideration for several weeks, and was not the result of any
specific threat and had nothing to do with the visit to Washington
this week by top Turkish officials.
 Secretary of State John Kerry met Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut
Cavusoglu on Monday, and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan is due to
attend a Nuclear Security Summit with other world leaders later in
the week. Kirby said Kerry had discussed the security announcement
with Cavusoglu at their meeting on Monday.
"The decision to do this wasn’t taken lightly. It was done after
careful thought and consideration, and inter-agency coordination,"
Kirby told a daily briefing at the State Department.
"The timing of it was completely considered independently of the
Nuclear Security Summit and the visit here to Washington by Turkish
officials," he added.
The U.S. military's European Command said it had ordered the
departure of families of personnel stationed in Adana, home of
Incirlik. It said families of U.S. military personnel also had been
told to leave Izmir and Mugla provinces in southeastern Turkey.
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"We understand this is disruptive to our military families, but we
must keep them safe and ensure the combat effectiveness of our
forces to support our strong ally Turkey in the fight against
terrorism," General Philip M. Breedlove, commander of the U.S.
European Command, said in the statement.
The departures do not indicate a decision to permanently end U.S.
families' presence at military facilities in southern Turkey, the
statement said.
The U.S. State Department said it had ordered the departure of
family members of government workers at the U.S. Consulate in Adana.
Dependents of U.S. government employees in Izmir and Mugla provinces
were also asked to leave.
The State Department issued a statement cautioning U.S. citizens
more broadly against traveling to southeastern Turkey.
It also warned of "increased threats from terrorist groups
throughout Turkey."
(Reporting by Lesley Wroughton, Yeganeh Torbati and Washington
newsroom; Editing by Bernadette Baum, Bernard Orr)
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