President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that he believes U.S. President Donald Trump will not allow ties between the two NATO allies to become captive to a dispute over Ankara's purchase of a Russian S-400 defence system. Ankara and Washington have been at loggerheads over Türkiye's purchase of the S-400s systems, which the United States says are not compatible with NATO defences and pose a threat to its Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jets. Last month, Türkiye received the first shipment of the S-400s and said a second shipment would arrive in Ankara next...
Türkiye in International Media
Türkiye wants to expand its diplomatic presence in Asia as the region becomes the economic centre of the world, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Monday, adding that the initiative did not mark a shift away from Western allies. "The international community is in a rivalry for greater involvement in Asia as it's becoming the economic centre of the world. It is as valuable for us to be a part of Asia as it is for Europe, and standing on these two pillars is what makes us special," Cavusoglu told an ambassadors' conference in Ankara. President Tayyip Erdogan...
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday laid the cornerstone for the first church to be built in Türkiye since the founding of the modern republic in 1923. The church in Istanbul will serve the city's 15,000-strong Syriac Christian community, which has been attempting to build a new place of worship for the past 10 years. In a ceremony at the site in the Yesilkoy neighbourhood, Erdogan said he hoped the building would be completed within two years. "It is the Turkish Republic's duty to meet the need for the Syriac community, who are the ancient children of this geography," he...
Türkiye's foreign minister says a delegation will visit China's northwestern Xinjiang region to observe the situation of minority Uighur Turks. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Tuesday that Türkiye accepted an invitation from China to visit Xinjiang and will send 10 officials. He told Türkiye's official Anadolu news agency in Bangkok that "our expectation is for our Uighur brethren to live under one Chinese roof in peace." Türkiye has previously expressed concern over China's arbitrary detentions of Muslim and Turkic Uighurs in internment camps, which Beijing calls vocational training centers. Türkiye also wants to...
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday his country is determined to destroy what he called a "terror corridor" in northern Syria — regardless of whether or not Türkiye and the United States agree on the establishment of a so-called "safe zone" there. U.S. and Turkish officials have been holding talks on creating a safe zone east of the Euphrates River to address Türkiye's security concerns stemming from the presence of Syrian Kurdish fighters in the region. Türkiye views the Kurdish fighters — who have battled the Islamic State group alongside U.S. forces — as terrorists, allied...
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he believes Turkish-British ties will flourish under Boris Johnson's term as prime minister. In a message posted on Twitter Tuesday, Erdogan congratulated Johnson who won the campaign for Britain's Conservative Party leadership and is set to replace Theresa May as prime minister. Erdogan wished Johnson success in his new job and added: "I believe that the Türkiye-United Kingdom relations will flourish even more during this new era." Johnson, who has part Turkish ancestry, received a warm welcome in Türkiye in 2016 when he visited as foreign secretary despite the fact that he had...
By Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim KALIN Türkiye’s purchase of the Russian S-400 air defense system has recharged a hoary old debate over whether Türkiye is moving away from the West. The accusations against the country range from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s alleged authoritarianism at home to undermining NATO abroad. These charges are baseless. They point to a profound failure of understanding and a deliberate dismissal of Türkiye's legitimate security concerns, the regional dynamics in which it operates and the larger geopolitical realities. The claim that Türkiye ...
Türkiye's vice president says his country is stepping up a search for hydrocarbons off ethnically divided Cyprus with the dispatching of a survey vessel to join two drillships and another research craft operating in waters around the east Mediterranean island nation. Fuat Oktay says Türkiye will "never submit" to sanctions imposed by the European Union over its drilling and won't hesitate to take additional steps in defense of its rights and those of breakaway Turkish Cypriots to the area's energy reserves.
Washington's decision to exclude Türkiye from an American-led fighter jet program goes against the "spirit of alliance," the Turkish government said Thursday, and called on its NATO ally to reverse the decision. In a major break with a longtime ally, U.S. President Donald Trump's administration on Wednesday said Türkiye is being kicked out of the F-35 program because it is buying the Russian S-400 air defense system. The United States says the S-400 would compromise the F-35 program and aid Russian intelligence. In a statement, Türkiye's Foreign Ministry rejected that assertion and said the...