Page 10 - Turkey

Turkey assisted Pakistan in setting up secret cyber-army against US, India

Turkey has secretly helped Pakistan in setting up a cyber-army camouflaged under the bilateral agreement which was used for domestic political goals as well as directed to attack the US and India

Turkey authority fines Meta $18.63 million for violating competition law

Turkey's Competition Authority announced on Wednesday that it has fined Meta Platforms Inc. 346.72 million liras ($18.63 million) for violating competition law

We'll fulfil deal with Turkey on NATO, says Sweden's top diplomat

Sweden's center-right government will fulfil all requirements under a deal with Turkey to join NATO and will concentrate external relations to its immediate neighbourhood while dropping the previous administration's feminist foreign policy," the country's top diplomat said on Monday. Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrm said the new government shares Turkey's concern about the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, which is considered a terrorist organisation in Turkey, Europe and the United States. There will be no nonsense from the Swedish government when it comes to the PKK, Billstrm told the Associated Press in an interview. We are fully behind a policy which means that terrorist organisations don't have a right to function on Swedish territory. Turkey stalled Sweden and Finland's historic bid to join NATO over concerns that the two countries - Sweden in particular - had become a safe haven for members of the PKK and affiliated groups. Under a memorandum of understanding signed by Swed

Indian market is important to us, says Turkish Airlines CEO Bilal Eksi

Turkish Airlines and IndiGo have agreed to code-sharing on each other's flights between Turkey and India.

Greece says Turkey stripped naked 92 migrants, forced them to cross border

Greek authorities accused Turkey of forcing 92 migrants to cross into Greece and stripping them naked before doing so. Greek police on Saturday said that police officers found the migrants stark naked on Friday, "some with bodily injuries" who had entered the country using plastic boats to cross the Evros River, which forms a border between the two countries. The migrants told police and officers of Frontex, the European Union's border agency, that they had been forced by Turkish authorities to board three vehicles that took them to the border. The migrants testified that they had been forced to strip naked before boarding the boats. Police said it had provided clothing and food for the migrants. "Turkey's provocative behaviour exceeded all limits," Greece's Ministry of Asylum and Migration said Saturday. Migration Minister Notis Mitarachi posted a photo of the naked migrants on his Twitter account Saturday, commenting, in Greek and English: "Trkiye's behaviour towards 92 migrants

Death toll rises to 40 in Turkey coal mine explosion; rescue efforts on

An explosion inside a coal mine in northern Turkey killed at least 22 people, Turkey's health minister announced, while rescuers were trying to bring dozens of others trapped inside the mine to the surface. The explosion occurred 6:45 pm on Friday at the state-owned TTK Amasra Muessese Mudurlugu mine in the town of Amasra in the Black Sea coastal province of Bartin. Energy Minister Fatih Donmez said a preliminary assessment indicated the explosion was likely caused by firedamp a reference to flammable gases found in coal mines. There were 110 people in the mine at the time of the explosion, Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, who travelled to Amasra to coordinate the rescue operation, told reporters. Most of the workers were able to evacuate following the blast, but 49 were trapped in a higher risk area of the facility, the minister said. Soylu would not provide a number for those still trapped, saying some among the 49 had been lifted to safety. Health Minister Fahrettin Koca ...

Turkey, Russia to study Russian President Putin's gas hub proposal

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says Turkey and Russia have instructed their respective energy authorities to immediately begin technical studies on a Russian proposal that would turn Turkey into a gas hub for Europe. Russian President Vladimir Putin has floated the idea of exporting more gas through the Turk Stream gas pipeline running beneath the Black Sea to Turkey after gas deliveries to Germany through the Baltic Sea's Nord Stream pipeline were halted. Erdogan said Russian and Turkish energy authorities would work together to designate the best location for a gas distribution center, adding that Turkey's Thrace region, bordering Greece and Bulgaria appeared to be the best spot. Together with Mr. Putin, we have instructed our Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources and the relevant institution on the Russian side to work together, Erdogan said. They will conduct this study. Wherever the most appropriate place is, we will hopefully establish this distribution center there

Turkish parliament passes disputed bill amending press, social media laws

Turkey's parliament passed a contentious bill on Thursday that amends press and social media laws with the stated aim of combatting fake news and disinformation. Critics fear that as elections loom, the measure will be used to further crack down on social media and independent reporting. The 40-article legislation was approved with the votes of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's governing party and its nationalist allies, which together hold a majority in parliament. The vote came following raucous sessions in parliament, which saw opposition legislators clap and shout to disrupt proceedings, hold up signs denouncing what they called the censorship law and one lawmaker smash a smartphone with a hammer. Amnesty International said after the vote that it was yet another dark day for online freedom of expression and press freedom in Turkey. "These new measures enable (the government) to further censor and silence critical voices ahead of Turkey's upcoming elections and beyond, under the

Vladimir Putin suggests turning Turkey into gas hub for Europe

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday doubled down on his proposal to turn Turkey into a gas hub for Europe after deliveries to Germany through the Baltic Sea's Nord Stream pipeline were halted. Putin floated the idea of exporting more gas through the Turk Stream gas pipeline running beneath the Black Sea to Turkey as he met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of a regional summit in Kazakhstan. It's the second unlikely energy proposal that Putin has pitched in as many days, with European leaders calling Russia's cuts in natural gas a political bid to divide them over their support for Ukraine. It's created an energy crisis heading into winter that has fueled inflation, forced some industries to cut production and sent home utility bills soaring. A day earlier, Germany rejected Putin's proposal to step up gas flows to Europe via a link of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline under the Baltic Sea a pipeline that has never been operational despite Moscow cuttin

Turkey ready to help peacefully address Ukraine crisis, says Prez Erdogan

Turkey was ready to contribute to a peaceful resolution of the Ukraine crisis in the interests of all, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin

Banks divert gold supply from India to China, Turkey ahead of festivals

Gold-supplying banks have cut back shipments to India ahead of major festivals in favour of focusing on China, Turkey, and other markets where better premiums are offered

Turkey inflation hits fresh 24-year high of 83% in September, shows data

The acceleration follows a series of interest-rate cuts this year by central bank Governor Sahap Kavcioglu that threaten to pile even more pressure on inflation

Turkey's annual inflation hits new 24-year high at 83.45% in September

Turkey's annual inflation reached a new 24-year high of 83.45 per cent in September, according to official data on Monday, pushing the cost of essential goods higher and further hitting households already facing high energy, food and housing costs. The Turkish Statistical Institute said consumer prices rose by 3.08 per cent from the previous month. Experts say inflation is much higher than official statistics, and the independent Inflation Research Group on Monday put the annual rate at an eye-watering 186.27 per cent. Last month, Turkey's central bank delivered another interest rate cut, lowering the benchmark rate to 12 per cent despite rising prices, a plunging lira and an unbalanced current account. The lira has lost over 50 per cent of its value against the US dollar since the central bank began cutting rates last year. Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the lira's decline have stoked inflation. Economists say rising inflation in Turkey is fuelled by President Recep Tayyip ...

We can defend islands despite Turkey's threats: Greek defence minister

Greece has the right to take all defensive measures to protect its easternmost islands amid threats by neighbouring Turkey that dispute Greek sovereignty rights and raise the spectre of war, the Greek defense minister said Saturday. Speaking after Cyprus' independence day military parade, Minister Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos said Turkey's revisionist and destabilising behaviour also undermines security in the wider eastern Mediterranean region. Panagiotopoulos dismissed Turkey's demands to demilitarize the islands as if they're not being threatened and as if we don't have the right to take all defensive measures for them as baseless and unacceptable. Earlier this week, Turkey summoned the Greek ambassador to protest the alleged deployment of dozens of U.S.-made armored vehicles to the Aegean islands of Samos and Lesbos, which Ankara says should remain demilitarized in line with international treaties. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also warned that his country wouldn't hold b

Hotels, tour operators shed Covid baggage as Diwali promises to sparkle

Group tours at 65-70% of pre-pandemic levels; Southeast Asia, Egypt, and Turkey seeing maximum demand

Sweden moves closer to NATO, lifts 2019 arms embargo on Turkey

Would-be NATO member Sweden on Friday announced it will allow exports of arms to Turkey, which had threatened to block the Scandinavian nation's application to join the 30-member defence alliance. The decision means that Sweden, which has sought NATO membership along with neighbouring Finland, will lift an arms embargo it had imposed on Ankara in 2019 after Turkey's military operation against the Kurdish militia known as the YPG in Syria. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had threatened to block the Nordic pair's membership, insisting they change their stance on Kurdish rebel groups that Turkey considers terrorists and lift the arms embargo on Turkey. NATO operates by consensus so Turkey needs to approve. Sweden's application for membership in NATO greatly strengthens the defence and security policy reasons for granting the export of military equipment to other member states, including Turkey, the Inspectorate for Strategic Products, a Swedish administrative authority, said in

Turkish President Erdogan asks Putin to resolve Ukraine crisis via talks

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has asked his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to engage in negotiations to resolve the Ukrainian crisis, according to a statement by the Turkish presidency.

Turkey issues arrest warrant for 21 over links with failed coup in 2016

Turkish prosecutors issued arrest warrants for 21 suspects over their alleged links to a network accused of orchestrating a coup attempt in 2016, a local news agency reported

Over 194,000 Russians flee call-up to neighbouring nations amid Ukaine war

It took Vsevolod four days to drive from Moscow to Russia's southern border with Georgia. He had to abandon his car at one point and continue on foot. On Tuesday, he finally finished his 1,800-kilometer (1,100-mile) journey and crossed the frontier to escape being called up to fight in Russia's war in Ukraine. At 26, I do not want to be carried home in a zinc-lined (coffin) or stain (my) hands with somebody's blood because of the war of one person that wants to build an empire, he told The Associated Press, asking that his last name not be used because he feared retaliation from Russia. He was one of over 194,000 Russian nationals who have fled to neighboring Georgia, Kazakhstan and Finland most often by car, bicycle or on foot in the week since President Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilization of reservists. The mass exodus of men alone or with their families or friends began Sept. 21, shortly after Putin's address to the nation, and continued all this week. Early on,

President Erdogan vows to protect Turkey's rights, interests against Greece

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to "use all means" to protect Ankara's rights and interests against Greece