Turkey

Representatives of the Turkish community have welcomed a declaration by the Bulgarian parliament that condemned the forced assimilation policy used against

The Bulgarian Parliament in a landmark move on Wednesday condemned the forced assimilation policy implemented against Turks in Bulgaria during the 1980s by the former communist regime. Parliament adopted a declaration on Wednesday that condemned the assimilation campaign

The latest attempt by Bulgarian ultra-nationalist party Ataka to ask the country’s Parliament to recognise the Armenian genocide was defeated in the House on January 11 2012. Vehemently rejected as historically valid by Turkey, the “Armenian genocide” refers

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called upon Greek and Turkish Cypriots to resolve their differences before July 1, when Cyprus takes over the rotating European Union presidency, in a letter published Tuesday. This would pave the way for an international

Turkey on Wednesday has allowed Russia to construct South Stream gas pipeline under the Black Sea. At the beginning of December Russia and Turkey discussed many energy issues, including the South Stream project. Ankara was delaying the construction permit in its territorial waters.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced a raft of political and military sanctions after French lawmakers adopted a bill criminalising denial of Armenian genocide. Turkey will recall its ambassador from Paris and suspend mutual political visits as well as joint military projects, including joint exercises, said Erdogan.

The Security Council today decided to extend the United Nations peacekeeping force in Cyprus until 19 July 2012, and called on the leadership of the Greek Cypriot and the Turkish Cypriot communities to accelerate the pace of talks aimed at reunification. 

French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Tuesday addressed Turkey’s bid to join the EU by saying that the organization “must first unite the European family”. “Removing reservations” toward Turkey’s European perspective would not make Europe’s tasks easier in the current crisis, he was quoted as saying.

Romanian President Traian Basescu has said the EU needs to send positive signals to Turkey, stressing that the EU candidate country brings an important contribution to the EU’s wider neighborhood, including the Middle East and North Africa. “Turkey brings an important contribution and is an important actor in the union’s …

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov on the margins of the OSCE Ministerial Council Meeting in Vilnius held bilateral meetings with the British and Georgian foreign ministers. The meeting with British Foreign Secretary William Hague discussed the current state