Turkey
The Brief, powered by VDMA – Can the EU trust Erdogan?
With the visit of Foreign Minister Mevlut Çavuşoğlu to Brussels, Turkey is attempting to change tack vis-à-vis the EU.
Turkish FM on charm offensive in Brussels
The European Union will on Thursday (21 January) press Turkey to make good on recent gestures from President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to calm tensions, as Ankara's foreign minister visits Brussels.
Athens seeks explanation for German FM’s silence over Turkey’s threats
Germany’s foreign minister Heiko Maas needs to explain why he remained silent after his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu threatened Greece at a joint press conference earlier this week, former FM Dora Bakoyanni has said.
Turkey blocks Cyprus from joining UN disarmament talks
Talks aimed at overcoming a years-long deadlock over disarmament at the United Nations began in acrimony on Monday (18 January) with two countries blocking rivals from taking part in widely criticised manoeuvres that sparked concern about the forum’s future.
Facing Biden, Erdogan extends olive branch to EU
Facing a potentially hostile US administration, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is trying to break his isolation by mending EU relations, torn by what the bloc views as his bellicose foreign policy.
Greece seeks to send 1,450 migrants back to Turkey
Greece is pushing to return 1,450 people currently in migrant reception centres on Lesbos and other Aegean islands to Turkey, Migration Minister Notis Mitarachi said on Thursday (14 January), calling on Ankara to respect asylum agreements with the European Union.
Turkish FM says the EU has ‘over-politicised’ accession negotiations
The EU has “excessively politicised” the negotiations between Ankara and Brussels, Turkey’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu told EURACTIV’s partner EFE in a written interview, calling on the bloc to take a more positive approach. He reiterated his country’s...
Former Greek FM: Without Western renewal, we’re heading for Chinese hegemony
The West has underestimated China’s rise, and the centre of gravity has switched from the Atlantic to the Pacific, where Europe has no role, Greece’s former Foreign Affairs Minister Nikos Kotzias, one of Europe's most experienced China analysts, warned in an exclusive interview.
Turkey bolsters influence across North Africa’s Maghreb
Turkey is boosting its influence across North Africa, analysts say, intervening militarily in war-torn Libya and using "soft power", trade and investment in Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco.
Erdogan slams European rights court’s ruling in support of Kurdish leader
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Wednesday (23 December) blasted the top European rights court's call for Turkey to release Kurdish political leader Selahattin Demirtaş after four years in jail.
EU hopes for Eastern Mediterranean conference fritter away
The EU push for a multilateral conference on the Eastern Mediterranean to ease tensions in the region has reached deadlock, diplomatic sourced told EURACTIV.com.
Opportunity for durable peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan should be seized
There are already signs for the potential transformation of the conflictual environment around Nagorno-Karabakh into one of cooperation and joint projects, writes Vasif Huseynov. Vasif Huseynov is a senior adviser at the Center of Analysis of International Relations of Azerbaijan....
Erdogan ‘openly interferes’ in Bulgarian politics, pundits say
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has started to interfere openly in Bulgarian domestic politics, pundits said after he made an unprecedented video address to Bulgaria's mostly ethnic Turkish Movement of Rights and Freedoms (DPS).
Fuming at US sanctions, Erdogan slams NATO
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Wednesday (16 December) US sanctions imposed on Turkey over its purchase of Russian defence systems were a "hostile attack" on its sovereign rights and defence industry, and the move was bound to fail.
Turkey ‘upset’, but undeterred by US sanctions and EU threats
Turkey will not abandon its rights and interests in the eastern Mediterranean because of possible European Union sanctions or criticism, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said on Monday (14 December), the day when the US effectively sanctioned Ankara.
Borrell dreams of ‘making multilateralism great again’
In a strategic article published on Monday, the EU chief diplomat, Josep Borrell, depicts the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on world affairs, warning of growing divergences between world players, backsliding in terms of global poverty and strengthening of the authoritarian regimes.
Merkel and Borissov blocked EU sanctions against Turkey at summit: sources
Germany and Bulgaria were the most vocal among the EU countries who blocked sanctions against Turkey at the EU summit on 10 December, sources have told EURACTIV.com.
US set to sanction Turkey over Russian defense system
The United States is poised to impose sanctions on Turkey over its acquisition last year of Russian S-400 air defense systems, three US officials said, a move likely to worsen already problematic ties between the two NATO allies.
Turkey’s Erdogan, at Nagorno-Karabakh parade, says Armenia needs new leaders
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday (10 December) renewed a call for a change of leadership in Armenia, as he reviewed a military parade marking that country’s defeat by Azerbaijan in a war in the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The EU and Turkey: Three scenarios
The volatile situation around Erdoğan’s Turkey poses a dilemma for EU decision makers. Three scenarios can be envisaged for how the EU handles tensions with Ankara, writes Sir Michael Leigh.
EU top diplomat keeps mum over Turkey arms embargo
The EU’s chief diplomat Josep Borrell clearly dodged a question on Monday (7 December) over the possibility to impose an EU arms embargo on Turkey as a means to convince Ankara to de-escalate tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Spanish...
EU countries feel ‘numb’ about Turkey ahead of critical EU summit
EU member states cannot find a common ground to respond to an escalating situation with Turkey ahead of a crucial summit later this week, EURACTIV has learnt.
Erdogan hopes France will ‘get rid of Macron’ as soon as possible
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Friday (4 December) he hopes France will get rid of Emmanuel Macron as soon as possible, the latest salvo in an escalating war of words between the two leaders.