News Scan for Turkey, September 9th, 2017
Turkey: Germans initially denied visit make it to NATO base
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s state-run news agency says a delegation of German lawmakers has arrived at a NATO air base in central Turkey to visit German troops stationed there.
Amid souring relations between the two countries, Turkey initially blocked the lawmakers’ request to visit German troops at the base in the city of Konya. Turkey later agreed to allow German legislators to take part in a visit by NATO officials. Anadolu Agency said the seven legislators, accompanied by NATO Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller, had arrived in Konya on Friday.
The German troops are part of a NATO air surveillance mission supporting the alliance’s fight against the Islamic State group. Earlier this year, Germany moved troops from Turkey’s southern Incirlik air base to Jordan over a spat concerning lawmakers’ access to German troops there.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/turkey-germans-initially-denied-visit-make-it-to-nato-base/
US indictment against former minister in Iran embargo probe political, step against Turkey: Erdoğan
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has claimed there are “malicious intentions” behind a new indictment filed by a U.S. prosecutor against former Turkish Economy Minister Zafer Çağlayan and three others accused of conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions against Iran.
“I deem this step taken against our former Economy Minister as a step taken against the state of the Turkish Republic,” Erdoğan told reporters before leaving Istanbul for Kazakhstan on Sept. 8. “It seems suspicious. The [case about] Reza Zarrab is like that, the issue about the deputy general of our Halkbank, Mr. Hakan [Aslan], is like that. All the other names are like that,” he added.
His comments came after U.S. prosecutors broadened an investigation into Turkish-Iranian millionaire Reza Zarrab, filing a new indictment charging Çağlayan, former Halkbank general manager Hakan Aslan and other two with “conspiring to use the U.S. financial system to conduct hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of transactions on behalf of the Government of Iran and other Iranian entities, which were barred by United States sanctions.”
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/us-indictment-against-former-minister-in-iran-embargo-probe-political-step-against-turkey-erdogan.aspx?pageID=238&nID=117721&NewsCatID=510
Trial of former Turkish minister on corruption charges abroad shameful: CHP head
Main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has said a person who had once served as a minister in Turkey being tried on corruption charges in another country was shameful, in remarks on the latest indictment against former Economy Minister Zafer Çağlayan and three others accused of conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions against Iran.
U.S. prosecutors had broadened an investigation into Turkish-Iranian millionaire Reza Zarrab, filing a new indictment charging Çağlayan, former Halkbank general manager Hakan Aslan and other two with “conspiring to use the U.S. financial system to conduct hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of transactions on behalf of the Government of Iran and other Iranian entities, which were barred by United States sanctions.” A U.S. court had later ordered arrest warrants for Çağlayan and Arslan.
“If Zafer Çağlayan goes to the U.S., he will be tried. He (President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan) says ‘Peculiar smells coming against us.’ We have repeatedly said ‘Do not do it.’ A person who had served as a minister in the Republic of Turkey being tried on corruption in another country is shameful,” Kılıçdaroğlu said on Sept. 9 speaking at a meeting over his party’s 94th foundation anniversary in Ankara.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/trial-of-former-turkish-minister-on-corruption-charges-abroad-shameful-chp-head.aspx?pageID=238&nID=117766&NewsCatID=338
Astana to determine future of Syria peace talks, Erdoğan says
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that preliminary work for the upcoming Astana Summit which will be held Sept. 14 has been finished and added that the steps taken toward establishing peace in Syria will hopefully be finalized in Astana.
Speaking at a news conference with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev in Astana, Erdoğan said that the outcome of Astana will determine the success of Geneva process.
He also noted that Turkey and Kazakhstan should work together to boost bilateral trade ties between the two countries. “Our goal is to boost the trade volume to $5 billion [from $2 billion] as soon as possible, as we previously said” Erdoğan said, adding that both countries have the potential to achieve this goal.
https://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2017/09/09/astana-to-determine-future-of-syria-peace-talks-erdogan-says
Turkish PM reiterates determination in terror fight
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım Saturday reiterated his country’s determination in fighting terror organizations PKK and Daesh. Yıldırım was peaking at an opening ceremony of a youth center named after a murder victim as part of events commemorating the 95th anniversary of western Izmir’s liberation from Greek forces.
“What we thought about when naming this center after Yasin Boru is: This country will always maintain its unity, solidarity, and brotherhood. The city of Izmir is the symbol unity and solidarity,” Yıldırım said. “We do not want to see our young ones be part of dark feuds,” he added.
On Oct. 5, 2014, 16-year-old Yasin Boru and his friends, Ahmet Dakak, Riyat Gunes and Hasan Gokguz, who were distributing food aid to syrian refugees, were chased down and lynched by alleged pro-PKK supporters on the second day of Eid al-Adha.
http://www.yenisafak.com/en/news/turkish-pm-reiterates-determination-in-terror-fight-2792501
Jury in USA approves warrant of arrest against Turkey’s former minister
Turkey’s former economy minister Zafer Çağlayan and former head of state-run Halkbank, Süleyman Aslan were recently charged by prosecutors in the U.S. with being involved in breaching of Iran sanctions illegally by wealthy Turkish-Iranian gold trader Reza Zarrab, who was arrested in the U.S. last year.
The indictment, which stands as a first in terms of a high-profile former member of Turkey’s AKP government getting charged in scope of investigations into the evasion of Iran sanctions, has been approved by the jury, issuing a warrant of arrest against both Çağlayan and Aslan, as Washington Hattı reported.
https://www.birgun.net/haber-detay/jury-in-usa-approves-warrant-of-arrest-against-turkey-s-former-minister-178483.html
Probe Into CHP’s Tanrıkulu’s Statement on Armed Drones Shooting Civilians
An investigation has been launched into Republican People’s Party (CHP) İstanbul MP Sezgin Tanrıkulu upon his remarks on the armed drones causing the death of one person and injuries of other three in Oğul village in Turkey’s eastern province of Hakkari on August 31, 2017.
Tanrıkulu had said the following regarding the armed drones: “In the past, there used to be the JİTEM (Gendarmerie Intelligence and Anti- Terror Unit), and now there are the armed drones performing the same tasks.
“Such practices do not exist in a state of law but only in war, and a war has certain rules. When you look at their governmental programme, the Government of AKP (Justice and Development Party) came to power in 2002 promising justice, freedom, equality and respect for human rights. And after 15 years, they have turned into the rulership of riot control vehicles, dozers and armed drones”.
http://bianet.org/english/politics/189671-probe-into-chp-s-tanrikulu-s-statement-on-armed-drones-shooting-civilians
09.09.2017
compiled by Editor BTT
This is a news-scan from major Turkish papers and internet sites. However, we do not verify above stories neither do we vouch for their accuracy.
