Trump, Pelosi clash in heated White House meeting on Syria Washington, United States | AFP | Top congressional Democrats walked out of a fractious White House meeting on Syria policy Wednesday when US President Donald Trump attacked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi as a “third-rate politician.” One of the Democrats attending …
Read More »Trump authorizes sanctions, slaps steel tariffs on Turkey
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump on Monday authorized sanctions on Turkey’s leaders, reimposed steel tariffs and ended trade negotiations to protest Ankara’s offensive into Syria. “I am fully prepared to swiftly destroy Turkey’s economy if Turkish leaders continue down this dangerous and destructive path,” Trump said …
Read More »EU ‘has no magic powers’ to stop Turkey offensive
Luxembourg, Luxembourg | AFP | EU foreign ministers on Monday voiced concern and condemnation at Turkey’s assault on Kurdish forces in northern Syria, but warned their options for coordinated action across the bloc were limited. Several European countries including Germany and France have halted arms exports to Turkey over the offensive …
Read More »Turkey ready for Syria offensive despite mixed signals from Trump
Akcakale, Turkey | AFP | Turkey said Tuesday it was ready for an offensive into northern Syria, while President Donald Trump insisted the United States had not abandoned its Kurdish allies by pulling forces out of the area, Istanbul sent more armoured vehicles to the border with Syria on Tuesday, an …
Read More »Trump threatens Turkey after greenlighting Syria invasion
Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump has warned Turkey against going too far in Syria, just a day after giving Ankara an apparent green light to invade its southern neighbor and sparking panic among Washington’s Kurdish allies. The US pulled back 50 to 100 “special operators” from …
Read More »US gives Turkey to July 31 to backtrack on Russian missile deal.
Washington, United States | AFP | The United States on Friday gave Turkey until the end of July to abandon its purchase of a major Russian missile defense system, which Washington considers incompatible with Ankara’s participation in the F-35 fighter jet program. If by July 31 Turkey does not …
Read More »Governments ponder what to do with returning jihadists
Paris, France | AFP | The imminent fall of the Islamic State’s caliphate in Iraq and Syria has left many countries grappling with what to do with jihadists who want to return. Several hundred foreign jihadists are being detained by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the main fighters on the …
Read More »Erdogan, Trump consider creating security zone in Syria
Ankara, Turkey | AFP | Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US counterpart Donald Trump mooted Monday the creation of a “security zone” in northern Syria as tensions rose over the fate of Kurdish fighters in the war-torn country. In a telephone conversation, the leaders “discussed the idea of creating …
Read More »Turkey vows not to be intimidated by Trump threats
Ankara, Turkey | AFP | Turkey on Monday vowed it would not be intimidated by US President Donald Trump’s threats of economic devastation if Ankara attacks Kurdish forces as American troops withdraw. Trump’s threat came after Ankara repeatedly threatened a new cross-border operation against the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which have been working closely …
Read More »Putin says still ‘open to dialogue’ with US
Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russian President Vladimir Putin has reassured his US counterpart Donald Trump that Moscow remains “open to dialogue” despite the year ending without the hoped-for warming of relations, the Kremlin said on Sunday. “Russian-US relations remain an important factor in order to guarantee strategic stability and …
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