<p class="title">President Donald Trump's administration has rejected Turkey's offer to condition the release of an American pastor on clearing a top Turkish bank of billions of dollars in US fines, media reported on Monday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Washington and Ankara are locked in a bitter feud over the nearly two-year jailing of Andrew Brunson over disputed terror charges, which has triggered a trade row and sent the lira into a tailspin.</p>.<p class="bodytext">In exchange for Brunson's release, and that of other US citizens as well as three Turkish nationals working for the US government, Turkey asked Washington to drop a probe into Halkbank, which is facing possible fines for helping Iran evade US sanctions.</p>.<p class="bodytext">But the US said that discussions regarding the fines and other areas of dispute between the two countries were off the table until Brunson was released, a White House official told the Wall Street Journal.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"A real Nato ally wouldn't have arrested Brunson in the first place," the unnamed official said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Trump has said he had doubled the tariffs on aluminium steel tariffs from Turkey, prompting Ankara to sharply hike tariffs on several US products.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A court has rejected another appeal to free Brunson and Turkey has threatened to respond in kind if Washington imposed further sanctions.</p>
<p class="title">President Donald Trump's administration has rejected Turkey's offer to condition the release of an American pastor on clearing a top Turkish bank of billions of dollars in US fines, media reported on Monday.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Washington and Ankara are locked in a bitter feud over the nearly two-year jailing of Andrew Brunson over disputed terror charges, which has triggered a trade row and sent the lira into a tailspin.</p>.<p class="bodytext">In exchange for Brunson's release, and that of other US citizens as well as three Turkish nationals working for the US government, Turkey asked Washington to drop a probe into Halkbank, which is facing possible fines for helping Iran evade US sanctions.</p>.<p class="bodytext">But the US said that discussions regarding the fines and other areas of dispute between the two countries were off the table until Brunson was released, a White House official told the Wall Street Journal.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"A real Nato ally wouldn't have arrested Brunson in the first place," the unnamed official said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Trump has said he had doubled the tariffs on aluminium steel tariffs from Turkey, prompting Ankara to sharply hike tariffs on several US products.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A court has rejected another appeal to free Brunson and Turkey has threatened to respond in kind if Washington imposed further sanctions.</p>