The European Commission (EC) will urge Turkey to normalise ties with Cyprus and boost human rights’ protections in its progress report on the country’s EU bid, local media reported on Sunday (November 7th). According to an advance copy of the document, due for release Tuesday, the Commission will call on …
Read More »Cypriot reunification talks continue
Cypriot President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu met on Monday (November 8th) for another round of talks aimed at reunifying the divided island. Discussions are expected to focus on the complex property issue. The two leaders will meet with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in New York on …
Read More »Turkish PM changes of borders in the Balkans would be detrimental to the region
Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in Priština that he “does not believe there will be changes of borders in the Balkans” or a partition of Kosovo. Erdogan, whose country recognized the Kosovo Albanian unilateral declaration of independence, said such a
Read More »Turkey ready to mediate Kosovo-Serbia talks
Turkey is ready to mediate future talks between Kosovo and Serbia in order to contribute to sustainable peace in the Balkans, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said as he kicked off a two-day visit to Kosovo on
Read More »Turkish PM to visit Kosovo
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is to visit Kosovo on November 3 and 4. He is scheduled to hold talks with Kosovo’s acting president Jakup Krasniqi and meet with the Turkish community in the towns of Prizren and Mamusa.
Read More »Turkey criticised over political rights
The watchdog group Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Monday (November 1st) accused Turkey of using anti-terror laws to stifle Kurdish protests and send peaceful demonstrators to jail. “When it comes to the Kurdish question, the courts in Turkey are all too quick to label political opposition as terrorism,” Emma Sinclair-Webb, …
Read More »Turkey’s Erdogan condemns Istanbul suicide bomb attack
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday (October 31st) condemned a suicide bomb attack earlier in the day in Istanbul’s Taksim Square, warning that no tolerance will be shown to those who challenge Turkey’s stability. “These kinds of attacks will not prevent Turkey from its aim of unity, fraternity …
Read More »Georgia, Armenia removed from Turkey’s threat lis
The National Security Council of Turkey has taken Georgia and Armenia out of its list of neighboring countries which pose security threats, according to news reports reaching here Monday. The Turkish security council had earlier approved of the change in the list, which previously included Georgia and
Read More »UN Secretary-General Ban invites Turkish, Greek Cypriot leaders for talks
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has invited Cypriot President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu for talks in New York, the UN announced on Saturday (October 30th). The meeting is to take place at UN headquarters on November 18th. The latest round of direct talks to reunify the divided …
Read More »ECHR rules Turkey must pay for violating property rights in Cyprus
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled on Tuesday (October 26th) that Turkey should pay 15m euros in compensation for damages caused by violations of property rights in Cyprus. The money must be paid out within
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