Turkey
Erdogan calls early elections under state of emergency, new purges underway
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Wednesday (18 April) called snap elections for 24 June, saying economic challenges and the war in Syria meant Turkey must switch quickly to the powerful executive presidency that goes into effect after the vote. The...
Hahn: Turkey taking ‘huge strides’ away from EU
Turkey is moving rapidly away from the path of European Union membership, the top EU official in charge of negotiations said on Tuesday (17 April), as Brussels delivered its harshest criticism yet of what it sees as Ankara's shift towards authoritarianism.
EU Parliament calls on Erdogan to release imprisoned Greek soldiers
In a resolution expected to be voted on today (17 April), the European Parliament will urge Turkey to release two Greek soldiers who were arrested last month, according to a document seen by EURACTIV.
Erdogan vows to bring back Gülenists from abroad
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday (9 April) his country is determined to continue the fight against what he calls the terrorist movement of Fethullah Gülen and bring home all “traitors” from abroad.
Game of thrones in Armenia and Azerbaijan
There is little doubt that the winner of the snap presidential election in Azerbaijan on Wednesday (11 April) will be its incumbent head of state, Ilham Aliyev. More interesting is the motive for such a move - which may well be the wish to counter the consolidation of power in arch-foe Armenia.
Turkey, Iran, Russia say will work for stability in Syria
Turkey, Iran and Russia pledged yesterday (4 April) to accelerate efforts to bring stability to Syria, underlining their joint commitment to the country a day after President Donald Trump raised the prospect of withdrawing US troops.
Greek soldiers are ‘political prisoners’ of Turkey, says Weber
Two Greek soldiers who have been held in a Turkish prison for about a month are “political prisoners”, according to the head of the European Parliament's largest group, Manfred Weber.
The Brief, powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS) – Bulgaria’s mid-term review
Three months of Bulgaria’s EU presidency have elapsed. So how is the bloc’s poorest member faring in its debut at the helm?
Varna to become permanent venue for EU-Turkey talks
The Varna summit held on Monday (26 March) between EU institution leaders and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan failed to yield any notable outcomes. But Bulgaria's PM said the port city could become a permanent venue for future talks.
Erdogan comes to leaders meeting with footage exposing ‘EU terrorism support’
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan arrives in the Bulgarian port city of Varna today (26 March) equipped with video footage that allegedly illustrates Ankara’s claim that EU countries host terrorists and do nothing to fight them.
Trans-Europe Express – EU risks escalating diplomatic crisis with Russia, says Bulgarian PM
The statement agreed by EU leaders blaming Russia for the Salisbury spy attack only risks further escalating the diplomatic crisis between Europe and Moscow, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov has warned.