Latest News from Turkey
Conversion of another church into mosque in Istanbul ‘insults its character,’ Foreign Ministry says
The formal opening of a former Byzantine church in Istanbul as a mosque "insults its character as a UNESCO world cultural heritage monument belonging to humanity," the Foreign Ministry has said.
Campaigning for Euro elections resumes after Easter break
After the Easter respite, party leaders resume their pre-election campaigns on Tuesday, as we enter the last stretch before the European Parliament elections.
On the diplomatic front, the government in Athens is preparing for Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' planned visit to Ankara next Monday, where he will be meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Turkey formally opens another former Byzantine-era church as a mosque
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan formally opened a former Byzantine church in Istanbul as a mosque on Monday, four years after his government had designated it a Muslim house of prayer, despite criticism from neighboring Greece.
S&P raises Turkey’s rating to ‘B+’ on economic rebalancing
Credit ratings agency S&P on Friday upgraded Turkey's ratings to "B+" from "B", saying that the coordination between monetary, fiscal, and income policy is set to improve, amid external rebalancing.
The credit action comes a week after the Turkish central bank kept its policy rate unchanged at 50%.
Turkey seeks to ‘force’ Israel into ceasefire, Erdogan says
Turkey's suspension of trade with Israel seeks to "force" Tel Aviv to declare a ceasefire in its war in the Gaza Strip, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said.
Turkish exporters seek workarounds after Israel trade halt, sources say
Turkish exporters with firm orders are looking at ways to send their goods to Israel via third countries after Turkey halted bilateral trade, four export company owners told Reuters, saying the decision had caught them by surprise.
Ankara to provide evidence to ICC over Israel
A senior Turkish official has announced that Ankara will present evidence to the International Criminal Court (ICC) regarding the investigation into Israel amid expectations of arrest warrants being issued against Israeli officials over the country's strikes on Gaza.
Athens, Ankara finalizing details of PM’s Turkey visit
Greek and Turkish officials are trying to finalize the details of the visit by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to Ankara on May 13, when he will meet with the president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Bloomberg: Turkey halts all trade with Israel over war in Gaza
The Turkey puts an end to imports and exports, without an official statement yet – “They lose,” says the Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs
Turkey halts trade with Israel
Turkey has suspended all exports and imports with Israel as of Tursday, according to two Turkish officials briefed on the matter, as reported by Bloomberg. Official statements from Turkey are pending.
Erdoğan slams US response to pro-Palestinian demonstrations
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan launched a critique of the United States' handling of pro-Palestinian demonstrations, accusing the nation of hypocrisy in its stance on the Gaza war.
"We follow as an example the hypocritical policies of those who teach us freedom lessons in the Gaza massacre," Erdoğan remarked during an international workshop in the capital Ankara on May 2.
Vucic receives Serbia boxing teams after historic European success
BELGRADE - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic hosted a reception on Thursday for the Serbia national boxing teams that collectively won a historic 20 medals at the recent European championships in Belgrade.
The US reluctance to call Turkey’s presence in Cyprus an occupation
This summer will mark 50 years since Turkey's invasion of Cyprus, and for the last five decades tens of thousands of Turkish occupation troops have been present in the northern part of the island. 50 years later, the US still refuses to officially recognize Turkey's illegal occupation as an occupation.
The fallout from Ankara’s adventurism
The reasons why Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's planned visit to Washington was called off lie in the distant, but also the recent past.
Erdogan not going to Washington
The already difficult US-Turkey relationship has entered an even more delicate phase with the cancellation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit to Washington.