Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a news conference after an agreement-signing ceremony between Turkey and Venezuela at Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela December 3, 2018. REUTERS/Manaure Quintero

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday there were positive developments on the case of Turkey’s state-owned lender Halkbank, adding that Ankara hoped for a positive outcome on the case.

Earlier on Friday, state-owned Anadolu news agency reported that prosecutors in New York had withdrawn an appeal to extend the 32-month sentence of former Halkbank HALKB.IS executive Hakan Atilla, who had been convicted for helping Iran evade U.S. sanctions in a case that strained ties between the NATO allies.

Erdogan was speaking to reporters in Istanbul after Friday prayers.