The recent arrest of Iranian-Turkish businessman Reza Zarrab in the U.S. is of no concern to Turkey, and even if the case is about money laundering, the real money launderer is Fethullah Gülen who lives in Pennsylvania, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told journalists at Istanbul's Atatürk International Airport yesterday prior to his departure to the U.S. "This issue does not concern our country, and I do not find it appropriate to make an assessment without knowing the reasons [of Zarrab's arrest] or whether it is about money laundering, but the big boys of money laundering are there in Pennsylvania [Gülen]. I wonder if authorities there have taken any action against them," Erdoğan said.

Accusing the Gülen Movement of stealing U.S. taxpayers' money, Erdoğan said: "As you know, this 'parallel structure' has many educational institutions in the U.S. There are charter schools within these educational institutions. They have ripped off these charter schools very slyly and cleverly and they continue to rip them off." He went on to accuse the movement of stealing from U.S. taxpayers and claimed that the sum is more than $100 million. He said authorities in the U.S. are not taking any steps against Gülen Movement money launderers who are not only a couple individuals, but thousands.

U.S. authorities do not pay attention to warnings from Turkey regarding the issue, Erdoğan added.

"If there is anything about Reza Zerrab, I guess [his] lawyers will give the necessary answers there and defend him," Erdoğan said, asserting again that the issue is in no way associated with Turkey.

ERDOĞAN TO HOLD TOP LEVEL MEETINGS

Apart from a significant bilateral meeting with Vice President Joe Biden, Erdoğan will also hold meetings with top-level business figures with aims to boost the Turkish economy. "Leading U.S. entrepreneurs, both in our country and in the U.S. or abroad… We will have a narrow-scoped meeting with them as well," Erdoğan said.

He added that he will also meet with academics, members of the press and opinion leaders to reflect on the recent incidents both in Turkey and the world.

DAESH POSITIONS BROUGHT DOWN IN RUINS

Commenting on a recent DAESH attack on Bashiqa camp in Northern Iraq, Erdoğan said the attack was retaliated in kind. He said the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) hit DAESH positions together with coalition forces. "This process will continue increasingly [and] in a much more different way," he said.

The TSK suffered its first military loss in Saturday's attack, which was the fifth DAESH attack on the camp since Turkish soldiers arrived there equipped with heavy weapons to train local Iraqi forces in December of last year. Four soldiers were injured in the first attack on Dec. 16 and the soldiers deterred a second DAESH attack in January, killing 18 terrorists. A third attack was rebuffed on Tuesday last week and there were no casualties.TERRORISM ON TOP OF THE AGENDA

Turkey will underscore the need to have a dedicated approach to fight terrorism, Erdoğan said, adding that that he is planning to hold talks with other leaders while attending a summit on nuclear security in Washington this week.

"During the summit, we will stress the need for a sincere cooperation to fight terrorism in the wake of the terror attacks in Paris, Ankara, Istanbul, Brussels and Lahore," Erdoğan told reporters at Istanbul's Atatürk Airport before his departure to attend the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C., which will take place on March 31 and April 1.

"We have no more patience left to pay the price due to a lack of cooperation," Erdoğan said.

Turkey was hit by several suicide bombings this year, in which dozens lost their lives, both in the Turkish capital Ankara and in Istanbul. In a recent statement, Erdoğan had acknowledged that Turkey had deported Brussels attacker Ibrahim el-Bakraoui to Netherlands, who was later set free by Belgian authorities.

OPENING OF AMERICAN RELIGION CENTER

Erdoğan will also attend the opening of the America Religion Center located in Maryland near Washington on April 2. He will inaugurate the Turkish-Islamic complex in Maryland, which includes a mosque, cultural center, community hall, guest house and 10 examples of traditional Turkish homes.

"This center will be the most meaningful response to the rising Islamophobia and xenophobia," Erdoğan said, adding that it will undertake a mission in intercultural cooperation.

The center aims to provide accurate information about Islam and Muslims, provide guidance to Muslims on prayers, morality and religious principles and create the necessary environment for dialogue through justice, peace, tolerance and mutual understanding.

The mosque's design was inspired by 16th century Ottoman architecture and is the only mosque with twin minarets in the country. Its capacity, with the courtyard included, will be 3,000 people. There is an Islamic art museum beneath the mosque.