Showing posts with label Erdogan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Erdogan. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Friday, July 13, 2018
Turkey's turmoil and how it measures up against other emerging markets
JULY 12, 2018 / 7:57 PM / UPDATED 18 HOURS AGO
Marc Jones
5 MIN READ
LONDON (Reuters) - Turkey’s financial markets are being battered. The lira is at a record low after slumping more than 20 percent this year, Istanbul’s stock market has just had its worst day in over two years and investors are dumping the country’s bonds.
Below are a series of graphics that illustrate the scale of the turmoil and show how Turkish assets now compare to those in other heavyweight emerging markets.
Marc Jones
5 MIN READ
LONDON (Reuters) - Turkey’s financial markets are being battered. The lira is at a record low after slumping more than 20 percent this year, Istanbul’s stock market has just had its worst day in over two years and investors are dumping the country’s bonds.
Below are a series of graphics that illustrate the scale of the turmoil and show how Turkish assets now compare to those in other heavyweight emerging markets.
Wednesday, April 18, 2018
Turkey says Greece flouts international law by not extraditing coup suspects
APRIL 17, 2018 / 9:41 PM / UPDATED 11 HOURS AGO
Reuters Staff
1 MIN READ
ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey accused Greece on Tuesday of violating international law by not extraditing eight Turkish soldiers Ankara believes were supporters of a failed coup attempt in 2016.
Turkey and Greece are at odds over various issues. Ankara is fuming over a Greek refusal to return the soldiers, who fled to Greece shortly after the coup bid in July 2016 and asked for political asylum. The two NATO allies were most recently at loggerheads over a flag hoisting in the Aegean Sea.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting in Ankara on Tuesday, Turkish government spokesman Bekir Bozdag called on Greece to abandon what he said were provocative moves in order to avoid “unwanted events” in the Aegean.
Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Mark Heinrich
Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Reuters Staff
1 MIN READ
ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey accused Greece on Tuesday of violating international law by not extraditing eight Turkish soldiers Ankara believes were supporters of a failed coup attempt in 2016.
Turkey and Greece are at odds over various issues. Ankara is fuming over a Greek refusal to return the soldiers, who fled to Greece shortly after the coup bid in July 2016 and asked for political asylum. The two NATO allies were most recently at loggerheads over a flag hoisting in the Aegean Sea.
Speaking after a cabinet meeting in Ankara on Tuesday, Turkish government spokesman Bekir Bozdag called on Greece to abandon what he said were provocative moves in order to avoid “unwanted events” in the Aegean.
Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Mark Heinrich
Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
America should work with Turkey, not terrorists, in Syria
The Washington Post
Serdar Kılıç, Washington
The writer is ambassador of the Republic of Turkey
The April 6 editorial “A gift to America’s enemies” claimed that Turkey is “irrationally bent on annihilating” Syrian forces, led by Kurds, “who have collaborated with the United States in fighting” Daesh.
The PKK and its Syrian branch the PYD/YPG are terrorist organizations that victimized the Kurdish people above all. As Daesh (also known as ISIS) does not represent the Muslims, the PYD/YPG does not represent the Kurds.
Turkey hosts 3.5 million Syrians from all faiths and ethnicities, including Arabs, Kurds, Turkmens, Assyrians and Armenians. The brutal Assad regime let the PYD/YPG widen its reign of terror to the areas these Syrians had to flee. A cynical cohabitation in these areas has emerged, similar to the one the regime had with Daesh. The PYD/YPG has never been an opposition element but an accomplice of the regime.
Turkey is the only country that fought with regular forces against Daesh in Syria and that took on another terrorist organization that was heavily entrenched in the mountainous terrain of Afrin. The Turkish Armed Forces showed an exemplary sensitivity for the protection of civilians. The liberated Afrin city center, which was left unscratched, stands in extreme contrast with the utter devastation caused in Raqqa by the PYD/YPG.
There is no room left for irresponsible tactical role-playing on the ground. It is time to see it all from a strategic perspective. The United States should rely on its decades-long alliance with Turkey, but not with a terrorist organization, while tackling the complexities of the Syrian conflict. This is essential for the future stability and security of the region.
Turkey taking 'huge strides' away from European Union: top EU official
APRIL 17, 2018 / 5:04 PM / UPDATED 10 HOURS AGO
Alastair Macdonald
5 MIN READ
STRASBOURG (Reuters) - Turkey is moving rapidly away from the path of European Union membership, the top EU official in charge of negotiations said on Tuesday, as Brussels delivered its harshest criticism yet of what it sees as Ankara’s shift toward authoritarianism.
While couched in diplomatic language, the European Commission’s annual report on Turkey’s progress toward membership blamed Ankara for a broad, collective and disproportionate crackdown after a failed 2016 coup attempt.
It warned that years of progress toward European Union standards in human rights, freedom of expression and the rule of law were being reversed and that Turkey had seen a weakening of local democracy as presidential powers increased.
Alastair Macdonald
5 MIN READ
STRASBOURG (Reuters) - Turkey is moving rapidly away from the path of European Union membership, the top EU official in charge of negotiations said on Tuesday, as Brussels delivered its harshest criticism yet of what it sees as Ankara’s shift toward authoritarianism.
While couched in diplomatic language, the European Commission’s annual report on Turkey’s progress toward membership blamed Ankara for a broad, collective and disproportionate crackdown after a failed 2016 coup attempt.
It warned that years of progress toward European Union standards in human rights, freedom of expression and the rule of law were being reversed and that Turkey had seen a weakening of local democracy as presidential powers increased.
Friday, April 13, 2018
Trash-Talking Toward Conflict?
The New York Times
By Nikos Konstandaras
Mr. Konstandaras is a columnist at the newspaper Kathimerini and a contributing opinion writer.
April 8, 2018
ATHENS — In a rapidly intensifying war of words, government officials of the nominal NATO allies Greece and Turkey have been exchanging insults and threats in the past few weeks, recalling conflicts from a shared and bloody history. Relations have rarely been rosy, but the speed with which they have worsened, and the level of vitriol, have raised fears that the two heavily armed neighbors may be trash-talking their way to new conflict.
Adding to those concerns is the awareness that the two most credible mediators between the two sides — the United States and the European Union — appear to have little leverage with Turkey.
Greece and Turkey have played decisive roles in each other’s history, and this determines their relations today. The Greeks rebelled against almost four centuries of Ottoman rule in 1821 and, after years of war (and foreign intervention), won their freedom with the declaration of the Greek state in 1830. Turks commemorate Sept. 9, the date on which Turkish troops entered Izmir in 1922 after routing a Greek invasion force, ending millenniums of Greek presence in Asia Minor and leading to the declaration of a modern, secular Turkey.
UPDATE 2-Turkey's Erdogan lashes out at investors over tumbling lira
APRIL 12, 2018 / 2:29 PM / UPDATED 18 HOURS AGO
Reuters Staff
3 MIN READ
(Adds graphic, central bank governor)
By Tuvan Gumrukcu
ANKARA, April 12 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan lashed out at international investors on Thursday, saying that no one could use exchange rates to bring the country to heel - casting a slide in value of its currency, the lira, as a foreign conspiracy.
His comments came after the lira plumbed record lows for five straight trading days, a sell-off that Erdogan and his ministers called an economic attack by outside forces.
The lira’s slide - it is down 8 percent against the dollar so far this year, one of the worst performances among emerging markets - reflects the gulf between Erdogan and international investors over monetary policy. Erdogan, an economic populist and a self-described “enemy of interest rates” wants to see lower borrowing costs despite double-digit inflation.
“Do not worry, Turkey continues on its path with determined steps, nobody can discipline us based on exchange rates,” he said in a speech in Ankara. “The rise in exchange rates has no reasonable, logical or by-the-book explanation.”
Economists say the lira’s slide is a reflection of entrenched inflation and wage growth and that interest rates needs to be raised to arrest its fall.
The lira was at 4.0970 to the dollar at 1321 GMT. On Wednesday, it set a record low of 4.1944. It was trading at 5.0475 against the euro after reaching a record low of 5.1914 on Wednesday.
The lira has faced some pressure from growing tension between the United States and neighbouring Syria and from a sell-off in the Russian rouble, the currency of a major trading partner and a fellow emerging-market heavyweight. But investors say most of Turkey’s problems are home-grown.
Markets are looking ahead to the central bank’s next policy-setting meeting on April 25. The bank’s reluctance to raise rates at its last two meetings has heightened the perception that it is less than independent.
The central bank is following developments in inflation and will tighten monetary policy further if that is deemed necessary, the governor of the central bank, Murat Cetinkaya, said on Thursday, comments that appeared to give the currency some relief.
Data released on Wednesday showed the current account - a broadly defined measure of trade that includes services and investment income - recorded a deficit of $4.152 billion in February.
That was less than the $4.2 billion forecast in a Reuters poll but an increase of more than 60 percent from the same period a year earlier. Analysts said it affirmed Turkey’s vulnerabilities on the balance of payments front.
Additional reporting by Nevzat Devranoglu in Ankara and Ezgi Erkoyun in Istanbul; writing by David Dolan; editing by Robin Pomeroy, Larry King
Reuters Staff
3 MIN READ
(Adds graphic, central bank governor)
By Tuvan Gumrukcu
ANKARA, April 12 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan lashed out at international investors on Thursday, saying that no one could use exchange rates to bring the country to heel - casting a slide in value of its currency, the lira, as a foreign conspiracy.
His comments came after the lira plumbed record lows for five straight trading days, a sell-off that Erdogan and his ministers called an economic attack by outside forces.
The lira’s slide - it is down 8 percent against the dollar so far this year, one of the worst performances among emerging markets - reflects the gulf between Erdogan and international investors over monetary policy. Erdogan, an economic populist and a self-described “enemy of interest rates” wants to see lower borrowing costs despite double-digit inflation.
“Do not worry, Turkey continues on its path with determined steps, nobody can discipline us based on exchange rates,” he said in a speech in Ankara. “The rise in exchange rates has no reasonable, logical or by-the-book explanation.”
Economists say the lira’s slide is a reflection of entrenched inflation and wage growth and that interest rates needs to be raised to arrest its fall.
The lira was at 4.0970 to the dollar at 1321 GMT. On Wednesday, it set a record low of 4.1944. It was trading at 5.0475 against the euro after reaching a record low of 5.1914 on Wednesday.
The lira has faced some pressure from growing tension between the United States and neighbouring Syria and from a sell-off in the Russian rouble, the currency of a major trading partner and a fellow emerging-market heavyweight. But investors say most of Turkey’s problems are home-grown.
Markets are looking ahead to the central bank’s next policy-setting meeting on April 25. The bank’s reluctance to raise rates at its last two meetings has heightened the perception that it is less than independent.
The central bank is following developments in inflation and will tighten monetary policy further if that is deemed necessary, the governor of the central bank, Murat Cetinkaya, said on Thursday, comments that appeared to give the currency some relief.
Data released on Wednesday showed the current account - a broadly defined measure of trade that includes services and investment income - recorded a deficit of $4.152 billion in February.
That was less than the $4.2 billion forecast in a Reuters poll but an increase of more than 60 percent from the same period a year earlier. Analysts said it affirmed Turkey’s vulnerabilities on the balance of payments front.
Additional reporting by Nevzat Devranoglu in Ankara and Ezgi Erkoyun in Istanbul; writing by David Dolan; editing by Robin Pomeroy, Larry King
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
Turkey has agreed to buy Russia's advanced missile-defense system, leaving NATO wondering what's next
Christopher Woody
Jul. 17, 2017, 1:48 PM
Business Insider
Turkey reached an agreement with Russia to purchase the latter's most sophisticated missile-defense system, the S-400, a senior Turkish military official told Bloomberg last week.
Under the $2.5 billion agreement Ankara would receive two batteries of the antiaircraft missile from Moscow within the coming year and then produce two more batteries in Turkey.
At the beginning of June, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow was ready to deliver the missile system, and a Russian military-industry official said an agreement on technical details had been reached in mid-June.
Jul. 17, 2017, 1:48 PM
Business Insider
Turkey reached an agreement with Russia to purchase the latter's most sophisticated missile-defense system, the S-400, a senior Turkish military official told Bloomberg last week.
Under the $2.5 billion agreement Ankara would receive two batteries of the antiaircraft missile from Moscow within the coming year and then produce two more batteries in Turkey.
At the beginning of June, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow was ready to deliver the missile system, and a Russian military-industry official said an agreement on technical details had been reached in mid-June.
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
Turkey detains academics for alleged links to cleric Gulen
By Associated Press July 10
The Washington Post
ISTANBUL — Turkey’s official news agency says police have detained 42 people, including academics, for alleged links to a U.S.-based Muslim cleric less than a week before the anniversary of the failed coup.
Anadolu news agency said the operations Monday targeted people working at Turkey’s Bogazici and Medeniyet University. Prominent Bogazici academic and government critic, Koray Caliskan, and 19 professors from Medeniyet’s medical school are among the detained.
The Washington Post
ISTANBUL — Turkey’s official news agency says police have detained 42 people, including academics, for alleged links to a U.S.-based Muslim cleric less than a week before the anniversary of the failed coup.
Anadolu news agency said the operations Monday targeted people working at Turkey’s Bogazici and Medeniyet University. Prominent Bogazici academic and government critic, Koray Caliskan, and 19 professors from Medeniyet’s medical school are among the detained.
Tuesday, July 4, 2017
Greece fires at Turkish freighter in Aegean, Ankara protests
03-07-2017
Deusche Welle
Greece's coast guard has fired "warning shots" at a Turkish freight ship near Rhodes island, prompting a protest from Ankara. Greek police say they acted on an anonymous call that it was "transporting drugs."
Turkey's foreign ministry condemned Greece on Monday over the shooting that left no one injured - but 16 bullet holes in the freighter's hull, according to its captain.
The vessel, the M/V ACT, had left the southern Turkish port of Iskenderun, near the Syrian border, and was heading west to the Gulf of Izmit when, according to Greek coast guards, it entered Greek waters northeast of Rhodes island.
"Warning shots were fired but the ship did not change course," said the Greek coast guard.
Deusche Welle
Greece's coast guard has fired "warning shots" at a Turkish freight ship near Rhodes island, prompting a protest from Ankara. Greek police say they acted on an anonymous call that it was "transporting drugs."
Turkey's foreign ministry condemned Greece on Monday over the shooting that left no one injured - but 16 bullet holes in the freighter's hull, according to its captain.
The vessel, the M/V ACT, had left the southern Turkish port of Iskenderun, near the Syrian border, and was heading west to the Gulf of Izmit when, according to Greek coast guards, it entered Greek waters northeast of Rhodes island.
"Warning shots were fired but the ship did not change course," said the Greek coast guard.
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