Assertive Turkey key to U.S. in shifting Middle East by Acturca Reuters (UK) Wednesday, December 12, 2012 by Nick Tattersall and Peter Apps (Washington/Istanbul) With its caustic rhetoric on Israel and its gold-for-gas trade with Iran, Turkey is not the deferential U.S. ally it once was as it carves out a growing role in the … Read more
Analysis: Turkey’s long wait to join EU club from BBC News | Europe | World Edition EU revives Turkish hopes of membership Turkey slams ?shameful acts? against flag in Basra protests from Hurriyet Daily News Turkey has condemned Iraq after around 200 protesters demanding that Ankara extradite Iraq?s fugitive vice president burned the Turkish … Read more
No chapters likely to be opened until 2013 from Hurriyet Daily News Despite the positive climate between Turkey and France following the French presidential elections, Ankara will likely have to wait until 2013 before it can speed up negotiations with the European Union, due to a tight calendar. EU should give new dynamism to … Read more
Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, shakes hands with French President Nicolas Sarkozy during arrivals for a G20 summit in Cannes, France on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011. French President Nicolas Sarkozy will welcome Barack Obama of the U.S., Hu Jintao of China as well as the leaders of India, Brazil, Russia and the other … Read more
Turkey and France were once great friends | Elif Shafak by Elif Shafak The tension between the two nations has made us forget they have more in common than populist politicians suggest It is no secret that little love is lost between French and Turkish politicians these days. French president Nicolas Sarkozy has made it … Read more
Brazil, Turkey, Iranian officials meet from Yahoo news ISTANBUL, Turkey, July 25 (UPI) — Foreign ministers from Iran, Brazil and Turkey met in Istanbul in an attempt to restart stalled negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program, officials said. Iran – Turkey – ISTANBUL – Middle East – Nuclear program of Iran Turkey, Brazil urge Iran to … Read more
Excerpt from Rabia Karakaya Polat (2010) ?How Far away from the Politics of Fear: Turkey in the EU Accession Process? in Tunkrova, L. and Saradin P. (eds.) The Politics of EU Accession: Turkish Challenges and Central European Experiences, London: Routledge, pp. 58-71.
In the last round, relations got worse but I believe this is just another (negative) step in many steps to come… A roundup on Turkish foreign policy… Historic efforts to establish ties between Armenia and Turkey may break down, the Armenian foreign minister warned on Friday, blaming Ankara for obstructing the process. (AFP/Graphic/Paz Pizarro) A … Read more
update:
Bashir cancels visit to Istanbul ;Sudan’s President Bashir, indicted for war crimes in Darfur, pulls out of a summit in Istanbul, following pressure from the EU and US.
Turkey on Friday rebuffed a European Union call to reconsider its decision to host Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir, who is wanted for alleged war crimes in Darfur, saying it had no plans to arrest him.(AFP/File/Ashraf Shazly)
Turkey seems to be one of the rare countries in the world where Omar Al-Bashir is welcome. Although I tend to be excited with gov’t’s foreign policy fantasies in general, Al-Bashir case is less exciting….
Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu releases a white pigeon during the opening of the new Turkish Consulate in Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad October 31, 2009. REUTERS/Khalid al-Mousuly
Source: Turkish Daily Mail
Date: Saturday, 31 October 2009 0:24
Tags: Turkey and Middle East, Middle East, Kurd, Kurdish, Iraq
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ARBIL – Turkey extended a regional peace drive to Iraqi Kurds when Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu met with top Kurdish officials in a landmark visit to Arbil.
?It is time for Arabs, Turks, Kurds, Shiites and Sunnis to rebuild the Middle East. Therefore, it is time for everyone to take brave steps,? Davutoglu told a joint press conference with Iraqi Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani late on Friday. Barzani praised Davutoğlu’s visit, saying it is even more significant now as the Middle East is passing through such a sensitive time.
Davutoğlu’s visit to Arbil, the first by a Turkish foreign minister, is a sign that a taboo maintained in Turkish foreign policy until recently is no longer in place.
Iraqi Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani (R) holds a joint conference with Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Arbil, 310 km (190 miles) north of Baghdad, October 30, 2009. Picture taken October 30, 2009. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari