Turkey will find it “comforting” if the EU says it cannot be accepted as a member, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has told the BBC. Speaking to HARDtalk’s Zeinab Badawi, he said Turkey was “able to stand on its own two feet”. He also denied the country had jailed 150 journalists, saying only two people with … Read more
Austria said Monday it had barred Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci from entering the country to attend a rally marking the anniversary of last year’s failed coup attempt in Turkey. “He has been barred because his visit was not planned as part of a bilateral exchange, but was about his public appearance at an event … Read more
The violence took place outside the Turkish ambassador’s residence in Washington DC, last month The Congress has called for criminal charges against those involved in a brawl outside the Turkish ambassador’s residence in Washington DC last month. Its resolution laid the blame at the door of bodyguards working for Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, saying … Read more
Oklahoma City Thunder’s Turkish star Enes Kanter said Monday he plans to seek US citizenship and has been receiving death threats as a result of his outspoken criticism of his homeland’s president. Kanter, who has compared Turkey president Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Adolf Hitler, was detained in Romania at the weekend after being informed that … Read more
Oklahoma City Thunder center Enes Kanter arrived in the United States on Sunday, a day after being stopped from entering Romania over a passport issue the Turkish NBA star blamed on his political views. Kanter, an outspoken critic of Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was detained and released Saturday at a Bucharest airport after being … Read more
Oklahoma City Thunder center Enes Kanter was detained and released Saturday at a Romanian airport after being told his passport was canceled, a move the Turkish star said was because of his political views. Kanter, blaming the incident on his political opposition to Turkey president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, posted a message on Twitter saying, “I’m … Read more
The ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ camps are increasingly polarised as the countdown starts for Turkey’s key referendum Sunday on expanding President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s powers. With analysts predicting a tight race that will decisively impact the country’s future, here are a selection of voices from both sides of the divide. “Because we want Turkey to grow, … Read more
King Abdullah of Jordan accused Turkey of exporting terrorists to Europe at a top level meeting with senior US politicians in January, the MEE can reveal. The king said Europe’s biggest refugee crisis was not an accident, and neither was the presence of terrorists among them: “The fact that terrorists are going to Europe is … Read more
Europeans across the world will not be able to walk the streets safely if they keep up their current attitude towards Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned. Turkey has been mired in a diplomatic row with Germany and the Netherlands after they banned Turkish officials from campaigning in support of an April referendum on … Read more
Turkish leader Tayyip Erdogan has issued a chilling warning that Europeans ‘will not walk safely on the streets’ as tensions between Ankara and the EU escalated further today. Erdogan has been locked in a row with Germany and Holland after his officials were barred from drumming up support on the continent for an April referendum … Read more
Turkey’s war of words with the Netherlands has worsened after the Turkish president accused the Dutch of carrying out a massacre of Muslim men at Srebrenica, Bosnia, in 1995. Bosnian Serb forces were in fact behind the massacre but Dutch UN peacekeepers failed to protect the victims. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the failure, still a … Read more
The Netherlands barred a plane carrying Turkey’s foreign minister from landing to stop him from addressing a political rally Saturday in Rotterdam. The Dutch government announced that Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu’s flight permit was revoked amid concerns over public order at the expected large gathering of Turkish expatriates. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reacted angrily … Read more
Istanbul authorities on Thursday said 2,000 Syrian families in the city could be set for Turkish citizenship but the government insisted approval would only come after an April referendum on boosting the president’s powers. “Until now in Istanbul, documents have been prepared and sent for further processing to the (interior) ministry for 2,000 families,” Istanbul … Read more
In the heart of Ankara, Turkish communications lecturer Sevilay Celenk gives a lecture to dozens of attentive students. But her lecture is not taking place on a campus, or even in a hall, but at a park, where the crowd has braced the bitter cold to hear her. Celenk is one of about 5,000 Turkish … Read more
Efforts to fight terrorism and extremists in Syria cannot succeed without a political solution supported by its people, the UN Secretary-General said on Saturday. António Guterres met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an during his very first bilateral visit since assuming his position in January. Turkey is the first leg of a trip that will … Read more
Turkey and Britain discussed steps towards defense industry cooperation on Saturday, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said after a meeting with visiting UK Prime Minister Theresa May. In a statement to reporters, Erdogan said he hoped to boost annual trade with Britain to $20 billion from $15.6 billion now. Erdogan also said an important step between … Read more
A woman walks under snow-covered trees during a snowfall in Istanbul, Turkey Turkey may hold a referendum in the first week of April on a new constitution which would create an executive presidential system, handing incumbent President Tayyip Erdogan greater powers, Deputy Prime Minister Nurettin Canikli said on Monday. Parliament’s general assembly is due to … Read more
The Turkish government immediately blamed Erdoğan’s former ally-turned-rival Fethullah Gülen for being behind the plot, the genesis of which remains unclear, but the simple fact is that none of the material Turkish officials have given to their US counterparts has yet risen to the standard of proof — let alone credible evidence — to support … Read more