Mevlüt

Turkish ambassador to the United Arab Emirates Tugay Tunçer has taken office as of May 1 amid Turkey's recent outreach to the Gulf country, with which Ankara had been at odds due to regional disagreements.

Turkey's foreign minister expressed the country's support for a cease-fire deal between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan on May 1 in separate phone calls to his counterparts in the two Central Asian nations.

Turkey and Turkish Cyprus have blamed Greek Cyprus for failing to introduce a new vision for ending the stalemate on the island as a result of a two-day-long U.N.-led conference in Geneva, underlining they will continue to work for a two-state solution.

A trilateral meeting between the foreign ministers of Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan is scheduled to take place in Istanbul on April 23. 

"Along with recent developments regarding the Afghan Peace Process, cooperation in the fields of security, energy, connectivity and irregular migration will be discussed during the Trilateral Meeting," said a Foreign Ministry statement.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has expressed concerns about the escalation of tension in the Black Sea, warning that the parties should refrain from the provocations amid continued quarrel between Ukraine and Russia over the Donbas crisis.

Turkey announced on April 20 that it is postponing a much-anticipated Afghan peace conference in Istanbul until the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

Turkey's ruling party on April 19 slammed recent remarks by the Greek foreign minister as both rude and prejudiced.

A provocative attempt by Greece of allowing a French research vessel accompanied by a Greek frigate to conduct scientific studies in the Turkish continental shelf was foiled by the Turkish navy last week.

Turkey's foreign minister on April 17 congratulated his new counterpart from Niger on his posting.

Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu spoke to Hassoumi Massaoudou over the phone, according to diplomatic sources.

He also held separate phone conversations with Finland's Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto and Kandia Camara, foreign minister of the Ivory Coast, the sources said.

Turkey's foreign minister on April 16 reaffirmed that the upcoming Geneva talks on the Cyprus issue will be an informal one.

"The meeting in Geneva will be informal. There will be no new negotiations to be held there," Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said at a joint news conference with Ersin Tatar, president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.