Turkey

19 Dec 2020; MEMO: Turkey is not afraid of the US's unilateral sanctions, the country's vice president said on Friday, Anadolu Agency reports.

"As always, we will continue to be on the side of common sense, in line with the interests of our nation. We are not afraid of [US's unilateral] sanction. Turkey does not [need] to be discouraged by any sanction," Fuat Oktay told the lawmakers in his closing speech while debating the 2021 budget in the parliament.

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Prominent Turkish philanthropist Osman Kavala, already in jail for more than three years without being convicted, denied charges against him on Friday as an Istanbul court opened a new trial in which he is accused of involvement in an attempted coup in 2016.

Ankara’s Western allies have raised concerns about Kavala’s detention and the European Court of Human Rights has said it only serves to silence him. After President Tayyip Erdogan last month promised judicial reforms, rights activists and opposition politicians redoubled calls for his release.

17 Dec 2020; AA: The US' unilateral sanctions attack sovereign rights of Turkey and other countries, the Turkish foreign minister said Thursday.

In an interview with Turkish news broadcaster 24 TV, Mevlut Cavusoglu said relations between the two countries could normalize if the US meets Turkey’s expectations.

He stressed that the sanction decision is a wrong step both legally and politically.

The US on Monday imposed sanctions on Turkey over its purchase of the Russian S-400 missile defense system.

17 Dec 2020; AA: Turkish parliament speaker on Thursday called on humanity to walk to the future together against the novel coronavirus.

"Since the virus does not differentiate people, we have common pain and wounds. So we have to heal the wounds, walk to the future together without leaving anyone behind," Mustafa Sentop told at the 6th parliament speakers' meeting of MIKTA.

Established in 2013, MIKTA is an informal partnership consisting of Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey, and Australia.

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - President Tayyip Erdogan’s nationalist ally said Turkey’s pro-Kurdish HDP party, the country’s third biggest, should be banned for separatism - a move the HDP’s co-leader condemned on Thursday as a bid to silence six million voters.

Nationalist Movement Party leader Devlet Bahceli has long been a fierce critic of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) and, like Erdogan, accuses it of ties to militants who have fought a 36-year-old insurgency in southeast Turkey.

16 Dec 2020; AA: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke over the phone with the head of the European Council, an official statement said on Tuesday. 

The statement by Turkey’s Communications Directorate said Charles Michel called Erdogan to inform him and exchange views on the recently held EU summit.

During their conversation, Erdogan said Turkey evaluates every positive step taken in Turkey-EU relations as “a new window of opportunity.”

16 Dec 2020; AA: Turkey will extend all possible support to Iraq in efforts to eliminate the PKK terror group, the country’s foreign minister said on Wednesday.

“We have always defended Iraq’s territorial and political integrity and will continue to do so,” Mevlut Cavusoglu said at a news conference in the capital Ankara.

Recalling how Turkey supported Baghdad’s fight against Daesh, he stressed that Ankara wants to see Iraq purged of all terrorists.

ANKARA, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on Tuesday that the U.S. sanctions against Turkey over its procurement of Russian-made S-400 defense systems undermine the values of the alliance between the two NATO allies.

"We condemn this decision, which does not comply with the alliance, current military, or political realities," the semi-official Anadolu Agency quoted the minister as saying.

15 Dec 2020; AA: No sanctions coming from the EU will change Turkey's positions on its rights in the Eastern Mediterranean, the country's foreign minister said on Monday.

"It is not possible to give up our rights and interests in the Eastern Mediterranean just because sanctions will come or because the EU will criticize us," Mevlut Cavusoglu told lawmakers during 2021 budget debates in parliament.

15 Dec 2020; AA: Turkey’s parliament speaker on Monday rejected US sanctions on the country over its missile defense purchases. 

"Sanctioning complies neither with the spirit of alliance nor with the will to regain an ally," Mustafa Sentop said on Twitter.

“The understanding that Turkey is obliged to procure only from them in the defense industry is outdated. We will continue to take every step necessary for our nation's defense," he said.