Turkey on Saturday slammed remarks by the presumptive US Democratic presidential candidate calling for Washington to interfere in domestic Turkish politics.
“US Presidential candidate Joe Biden’s remarks (made in December but reported by the media today) reflect the games being played over Turkey and their interventionist attitudes,” Fahrettin Altun, the head of Turkey’s Communications Directorate, wrote on Twitter in English.
“These remarks are not in line with democracy and the nature of Turkish-American relations,” he added.
The current US administration would find these “undiplomatic remarks unseemly of a presidential candidate” in a NATO ally, said Altun, adding that Turkey is not to be made into other countries’ domestic political fodder.
He underlined that US political institutions and the public should “disregard these irresponsible statements,” clearly intended to score domestic political points.
“On top of all this, it’s sad (though not surprising) that the opposition politicians in our country have yet to denounce these remarks that raise questions in the minds of our people and are insulting to the Turkish nation’s democratic will and sovereignty,” said Altun.
Turkey will not allow its democratic politics to be disturbed by such “irresponsible” statements, said Altun.
“Our country will continue our national struggle under the leadership of our President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,” he added.
In the remarks – first reported a few hours ago, but apparently made to the New York Times editorial board for a January episode of the FX documentary series The Weekly – Biden calls for the US to try to interfere in Turkish domestic politics, saying it should take sides, and that in the past he, in his role as vice president, had actually done so.
Biden also implied he would involve the US directly into domestic Turkish affairs.
“What I think we should be doing is taking a very different approach to him [Erdogan] now, making it clear that we support opposition leadership,” he said.
He added: “I’m still of the view that if we were to engage more directly like I was doing with them, that we can support those elements of the Turkish leadership that still exist and get more from them and embolden them to be able to take on and defeat Erdogan. Not by a coup, not by a coup, but by the electoral process.”
The last remarks seem to refer to the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey by the Fetullah Terrorist Organization – whose leader lives in the US, despite years of Turkish requests to extradite him – and which martyred 251 people and injured nearly 2,200.
In the US presidential race, Biden is currently leading in most polls, but the Nov. 3 election is still months away.
Turkey to fully protect rights in E.Med, Libya, Aegean
Turkey is also focused on stopping terrorist groups in Syria and northern Iraq, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in Rize on the Turkish Black Sea, speaking to the public and local members of his ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party.
“We’re conducting the most comprehensive and successful operations in history against terrorist groups,” he said.
Since 2016, Turkey has launched several cross-border operations in both northern Syria and northern Iraq to eliminate the YPG/PKK terrorists there who plan attacks against Turkey and try to set up terror corridors.
In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the European Union – has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is the terrorist PKK’s Syrian branch.
“We’re currently focused on achieving the rights and interests of our country in every field at the most advanced level all over the world,” Erdogan said, adding that this is Turkey’s real agenda.
Erdogan underlined that the country is also striving to fight the novel coronavirus pandemic and its fallout, as well as strengthening the Turkish economy.
Turkey has become a source of hope for all oppressed regions, including Palestine, Yemen, Syria, Myanmar’s Rakhine state with its oppressed Rohingya, and Libya, he said.
Eastern Mediterranean
On Ankara’s energy exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean region, Erdogan said Turkey is fully justified in its exploration in terms of both international maritime law and established conventions.
Turkey will continue to defend its rights “using all its means,” he said.
“Turkey will never bow to banditry on its continental shelf, nor will it pull back in the face of sanctions and threats.”
But after declaring the Greek-Egyptian deal “null and void,” Turkey authorized the Oruc Reis energy exploration vessel to continue its activities in an area within the country’s continental shelf.
The ship will continue a two-week mission until Aug. 23 along with the ships Cengiz Han and Ataman.
“We will never hesitate to respond to the slightest harassment of our ship,” Erdogan said, adding that Turkey never seeks to stir tension or claim the rights of others.
He stressed that Turkey defends the rights of the nation as well as the Turkish Cypriots.
Erdogan said the only solution to the dispute lies through dialogue and negotiation and urged Athens to respect Turkey’s rights.
Turkey has consistently opposed Greece’s efforts to declare an exclusive economic zone based on small islands near Turkish shores, violating the interests of Turkey, the country with the longest coastline in the Mediterranean.
Turkey’s freedom of religion
Turning to Greece’s mistreatment of the Turkish minority in the country, Erdogan said: “Our expectation is that Greece acts sensibly, not as incited by others, and to put an end to policies akin to state terrorism, especially against our brothers in Western Thrace.”
Greece’s Western Thrace region – in the country’s northeast, near the Turkish border – is home to a substantial, long-established Muslim Turkish minority numbering around 150,000.
Decades of Greek mistreatment of the Turkish minority has been ignored by the EU, even as it violates international treaties, high court rulings, and the bloc’s own rules.
Decrying attacks on Turks’ mosques and schools in Western Thrace, Erdogan said that Turkey, in contrast, spent five years renovating the ancient Orthodox Sumela Monastery in its Black Sea region, which recently restarted mass services.
“We have no problem with anyone over freedom of religion. Everyone in this country can live safely according to their faith,” Erdogan said.
The S&P 500 rose to an all-time high on Tuesday, capping off its incredible recovery from the coronavirus-induced sell-off that knocked it off its previous record back in February.
Turkey on Saturday slammed remarks by the presumptive US Democratic presidential candidate calling for Washington to interfere in domestic Turkish politics.
“US Presidential candidate Joe Biden’s remarks (made in December but reported by the media today) reflect the games being played over Turkey and their interventionist attitudes,” Fahrettin Altun, the head of Turkey’s Communications Directorate, wrote on Twitter in English.
“These remarks are not in line with democracy and the nature of Turkish-American relations,” he added.
The current US administration would find these “undiplomatic remarks unseemly of a presidential candidate” in a NATO ally, said Altun, adding that Turkey is not to be made into other countries’ domestic political fodder.
He underlined that US political institutions and the public should “disregard these irresponsible statements,” clearly intended to score domestic political points.
“On top of all this, it’s sad (though not surprising) that the opposition politicians in our country have yet to denounce these remarks that raise questions in the minds of our people and are insulting to the Turkish nation’s democratic will and sovereignty,” said Altun.
Turkey will not allow its democratic politics to be disturbed by such “irresponsible” statements, said Altun.
“Our country will continue our national struggle under the leadership of our President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,” he added.
In the remarks – first reported a few hours ago, but apparently made to the New York Times editorial board for a January episode of the FX documentary series The Weekly – Biden calls for the US to try to interfere in Turkish domestic politics, saying it should take sides, and that in the past he, in his role as vice president, had actually done so.
Biden also implied he would involve the US directly into domestic Turkish affairs.
“What I think we should be doing is taking a very different approach to him [Erdogan] now, making it clear that we support opposition leadership,” he said.
He added: “I’m still of the view that if we were to engage more directly like I was doing with them, that we can support those elements of the Turkish leadership that still exist and get more from them and embolden them to be able to take on and defeat Erdogan. Not by a coup, not by a coup, but by the electoral process.”
The last remarks seem to refer to the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey by the Fetullah Terrorist Organization – whose leader lives in the US, despite years of Turkish requests to extradite him – and which martyred 251 people and injured nearly 2,200.
In the US presidential race, Biden is currently leading in most polls, but the Nov. 3 election is still months away.
Turkey to fully protect rights in E.Med, Libya, Aegean
Turkey is also focused on stopping terrorist groups in Syria and northern Iraq, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in Rize on the Turkish Black Sea, speaking to the public and local members of his ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party.
“We’re conducting the most comprehensive and successful operations in history against terrorist groups,” he said.
Since 2016, Turkey has launched several cross-border operations in both northern Syria and northern Iraq to eliminate the YPG/PKK terrorists there who plan attacks against Turkey and try to set up terror corridors.
In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the European Union – has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is the terrorist PKK’s Syrian branch.
“We’re currently focused on achieving the rights and interests of our country in every field at the most advanced level all over the world,” Erdogan said, adding that this is Turkey’s real agenda.
Erdogan underlined that the country is also striving to fight the novel coronavirus pandemic and its fallout, as well as strengthening the Turkish economy.
Turkey has become a source of hope for all oppressed regions, including Palestine, Yemen, Syria, Myanmar’s Rakhine state with its oppressed Rohingya, and Libya, he said.
Eastern Mediterranean
On Ankara’s energy exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean region, Erdogan said Turkey is fully justified in its exploration in terms of both international maritime law and established conventions.
Turkey will continue to defend its rights “using all its means,” he said.
“Turkey will never bow to banditry on its continental shelf, nor will it pull back in the face of sanctions and threats.”
But after declaring the Greek-Egyptian deal “null and void,” Turkey authorized the Oruc Reis energy exploration vessel to continue its activities in an area within the country’s continental shelf.
The ship will continue a two-week mission until Aug. 23 along with the ships Cengiz Han and Ataman.
“We will never hesitate to respond to the slightest harassment of our ship,” Erdogan said, adding that Turkey never seeks to stir tension or claim the rights of others.
He stressed that Turkey defends the rights of the nation as well as the Turkish Cypriots.
Erdogan said the only solution to the dispute lies through dialogue and negotiation and urged Athens to respect Turkey’s rights.
Turkey has consistently opposed Greece’s efforts to declare an exclusive economic zone based on small islands near Turkish shores, violating the interests of Turkey, the country with the longest coastline in the Mediterranean.
Turkey’s freedom of religion
Turning to Greece’s mistreatment of the Turkish minority in the country, Erdogan said: “Our expectation is that Greece acts sensibly, not as incited by others, and to put an end to policies akin to state terrorism, especially against our brothers in Western Thrace.”
Greece’s Western Thrace region – in the country’s northeast, near the Turkish border – is home to a substantial, long-established Muslim Turkish minority numbering around 150,000.
Decades of Greek mistreatment of the Turkish minority has been ignored by the EU, even as it violates international treaties, high court rulings, and the bloc’s own rules.
Decrying attacks on Turks’ mosques and schools in Western Thrace, Erdogan said that Turkey, in contrast, spent five years renovating the ancient Orthodox Sumela Monastery in its Black Sea region, which recently restarted mass services.
“We have no problem with anyone over freedom of religion. Everyone in this country can live safely according to their faith,” Erdogan said.
Turkey’s Defense Minister Hulusi Akar on Wednesday set off for Azerbaijan to observe joint military exercises.
He was accompanied by a delegation comprising army chief Gen. Yasar Guler and top naval, land and air forces commanders.
The military exercises are projected for Thursday and will be attended by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
Greece’s controversial move last week to sign a maritime delimitation agreement with Egypt, while also sitting for talks with Turkey in Germany, is unethical, said a Turkish political party leader Wednesday.
Turkey’s internal and external problems have intensified, said Devlet Bahceli, head of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), in a written statement.
Global and regional tension is worrying, and the port blast in Beirut has also negatively affected Lebanon’s internal politics and the regional dynamics, he said.
Stressing that the Beirut blast was one of the gravest calamities of our time, Bahceli said the event would be investigated and the possibility of sabotage or neglect would soon come to light. All problems in Lebanon affect Syria, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Israel, Cyprus, and the world, he added.
Tensions in Eastern Mediterranean
Saying that a visit last week to Lebanon by two top Turkish officials was very timely, Bahceli added: “Turkey is acting in line with its historical responsibility towards its brothers in Lebanon.”
“The Beirut explosion happened […] while Turkey and Greece are in a face-off. Two days later, Greece and Egypt signed a so-called maritime deal. The area that is supposedly demarcated by these two countries is clearly on Turkey’s continental shelf. This also violates Libya’s maritime jurisdiction. While Greece sits in negotiations with Turkey in Germany, it also signs a so-called and null agreement with Egypt, and this is an unethical setup,” Bahceli said.
A powerful explosion rocked Beirut port on Aug. 4 after a neglected stockpile of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse ignited, killing at least 171 people, injuring 6,000 others and leaving approximately 300,000 people homeless. The blast took place at a time when Lebanon was already dealing with a severe financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic.
Turkey in Mediterranean to stay
Bahceli accused “those who want to isolate Turkey from […] the Eastern Mediterranean” of also trying to cut Ankara off from Lebanon.
Greece is in a hostile approach, but Turkey is not afraid to retaliate, Bahceli said.
“No one can remove Turkey from the Mediterranean. We aren’t giving up a single stone of our 780,000 square kilometers of land and we’ll never give up a single drop of our 460,000 square kilometers of Blue Homeland.”
Turkey’s seismic research ship, the Oruc Reis, “will always protect our rights in the Mediterranean. If anyone comes against Turkey, they’ll face retaliation”, he added.
Turkey won’t give up on Blue Homeland
Greece is acting in violation of the Lausanne Agreement and acting against the unarmed status of the Aegean islands, according to Bahceli. “Greece should retreat from the islands and rocks, which it invaded illegally. It should disarm the islands and stop its provocations in the Mediterranean.”
“The maritime, air and land disagreements between Greece and Turkey should be resolved through diplomacy. Solutions within international law and neighbor countries’ rights can yield results. Turkey cannot give up on its Blue Homeland and turn its back on its own jurisdiction area,” he said.
Ankara’s sovereignty will always be defended and Greece and Egypt should reconsider their so-called agreement and partnerships, Bahceli added.
He said that Turkey was increasingly being surrounded by a ring of fire, with the situation in the Southern Caucasus becoming more complex and post-election unrest erupting in Belarus due to “foreign pressure.”
“While all these happen in foreign politics, there are efforts to harm Turkey and Syria’s, as well as Turkey’s and Lebanon’s, brotherhood,” he added.
“Turkey is an independent state. If we cannot protect our rights, we will lose our national dignity. Our party will do everything in its power to support this purpose,” Bahceli said.
Turkey on Wednesday confirmed 1,212 new cases of the coronavirus bringing the tally to 244,392, according to Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.
The country also confirmed 934 more recoveries, pushing the total to 227,089, said Koca.
Meanwhile, 18 more people lost their lives to the virus that has claimed 5,891 lives in Turkey.
Turkey will reopen schools on Sept. 21 with measures in place to counter the coronavirus, the country’s education minister said Wednesday.
Ziya Selcuk said in a news conference that students will return to the campus gradually and in phases.
The minister said classrooms will be arranged in accordance with social distancing rules and schools provided with disinfectants and masks.
He went on to say that the continuation of face-to-face classes depended on how responsibly families and students behaved.
According to Selcuk, swift measures will be taken if students’ families or nearby circles are diagnosed with coronavirus.
Over 2,000 inspectors have been checking standards of schools ahead of the planned reopening.
The new school year will commence nationwide on Aug. 31 with classes held remotely.
Private schools may start online classes from Aug. 17.
Schools across the country were closed in mid-March as part of measures to curb the spread of coronavirus.
Turkey has so far reported over 244,000 coronavirus cases and above 227,000 recoveries. The death toll stands at 5,891.
The Turkish president met on Wednesday the management of Anadolu Agency, the country’s most trusted news source, as part of its centenary celebrations.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan hosted a reception, which lasted for more than an hour, at the presidential complex in the capital Ankara.
The news agency was established on April 6, 1920 by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founding father of the Turkish Republic. It operates in 13 languages and provides news to nearly 6,000 subscribers from 100 countries.
Drawing on the global developments, the president emphasized the media’s role in conveying the truth.
Among the attendees were Director General of Anadolu Agency Senol Kazanci, Muhammet Salih Demirkan, deputy chairman of the board, board members Ali Turker Pirtini, Bahadir Saracgil and Saban Kizildag, Deputy Director General and Editor-in-Chief Metin Mutanoglu and Deputy Director General Mustafa Ozkaya.
Turkey’s Communications Director Fahrettin Altun and officials from the presidency were also present.
Turkey is set to issue a license for drilling in the western part of its continental shelf in the Eastern Mediterranean region, the country’s foreign minister said on Tuesday.
Mevlut Cavusoglu’s remarks came at a news conference held following his meeting with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov.
Cavusoglu said the Turkish administration demonstrated its goodwill in the region where tension has been high following the discovery of energy resources, by making “temporary” gestures in line with the demands of Germany and some other European countries.
However, according to the Turkish top diplomat, Ankara’s gestures were not reciprocated by the Greek administration and Greek Cypriots and Turkey reactivated its drilling vessels in response.
“We will defend rights of Turkey and Turkish Cypriots in the Eastern Mediterranean, and not make any concessions,” he said, adding seismic and drilling activities would be conducted this month.
“Oruc Reis [seismic research vessel] has gone to the region, we had designated the western frontier of our continental shelf in new regions as of late August. By giving licenses to those areas as well, we’ll continue all kinds of seismic research and drilling activities. We are fully determined,” he said.
Cavusoglu went on to say that Turkey had consistently demonstrated a positive approach to the matter and accused Greece of ill-will against Turkey.
Azerbaijan-Turkey ties
Azerbaijan’s newly-appointed top diplomat said he was glad to make his first official foreign visit to Turkey.
Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov underlined that the relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan were developing in all areas, adding that their trade volume continued to expand.
Bayramov also thanked Ankara for its support during recent border tensions with Armenia in Azerbaijan’s northwestern Tovuz area, leaving at least 12 Azerbaijani soldiers — including two senior officers — martyred and another four soldiers wounded.
“Brotherly Turkey always categorically supports Azerbaijan’s position based on international law,” he said, adding that Baku also always supported Turkey’s “just stand.”
“Azerbaijan and its nation always stands by Turkey. Our unity is eternal and we build our future based on this solid ground.”
Baku accused Yerevan of “provocative” behavior and Turkey warned that it would not hesitate to oppose any attack on Azerbaijan.
Bayramov said Armenia’s aggressive politics were the main obstacle towards sustained peace in the region.
“Azerbaijan-Turkey relations, which are based on historical roots and brotherhood, are developing in all areas, including the political, economic, humanitarian and military fields.”
The development of relations with strategic partner Turkey is Azerbaijan’s foreign policy priority, he said.
The first coronavirus vaccine in the world has been registered in Russia, President Vladimir Putin announced Tuesday.
The vaccine, developed by the Gamaleya National Research Center, has officially been registered with Russia’s Health Ministry, Putin told a meeting of members of the government in Moscow.
Putin added that the vaccine trials yielded positive results, with all volunteers having built up immunity to the coronavirus.
He added that one of his own two daughters was among the vaccine’s first recipients.
After inoculation she had a high temperature for two days, then developed immunity, and recent tests found a high level of antibodies against the virus, said Putin.
He stressed that the vaccination will be “strictly voluntary and free of charge.”
Mass vaccination as early as October
The vaccine is based on human adenovirus and contains dead COVID-19 particles which cannot multiply and are therefore safe, said Alexander Gintzburg, head of the Gamaleya center.
However, it can provoke an immune response such as high temperature to the introduction of foreign substances, he added.
The vaccine is called GamCovidVac, standing for “Gamaleya Covid Vaccine.”
It is designed to be administered through two injections to prolong the immunity. The vaccine will be co-produced by the Gamaleya Center and Binnofarm, a Moscow-based pharmaceutical.
In the first phase, doctors, the elderly, and teachers will be immunized. Mass vaccination is expected to start in October.
Earlier, the Association of Clinical Trials Organizations (ACTO) asked the Health Ministry to delay registration of the vaccine, saying the trial had not had enough test subjects. But the ministry rejected the request, saying the group’s claims fail to take into account the trial results.
Since appearing in Wuhan, China last December, the novel coronavirus has spread to at least 188 countries and territories.
The US is leading with the most confirmed infections with 5.09 million, followed by Brazil with over 3 million cases and India with 2.27 million, according to data compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University. With nearly 900,000 cases, Russia is among the hardest-hit countries.
New Zealand’s prime minister on Tuesday confirmed four local cases of the novel coronavirus — the first in the last 102 days.
Addressing a news conference aired live in Auckland, Jacinda Ardern said four local infections had been reported in the country.
The new cases were reported after 102 days with no registered local COVID-19 infections.
Authorities have since announced a lockdown in the capital to alert level-3 starting Wednesday afternoon, Ardern said.
A total of 1,570 coronavirus cases have been reported in the country, including 22 deaths.
Ardern said that under alert level-3, Auckland residents would stay home “unless you were an essential service worker.”
The rest of the country will be under alert level-2.
Ardern asked schools, public facilities, bars, restaurants and businesses to close from mid-day Wednesday.
Earlier, New Zealand had imposed a level-4 lockdown on March 25 and moved to level-3 on April 27. With active cases at nearly zero, the country moved into level-2 on May 13 and level-1 on June 9.
Turkey will continue to implement its own plans in the field and diplomacy until a common sense prevails on the issue of Eastern Mediterranean, the Turkish president said Monday.
“Turkey will continue to implement its own plans in the field and diplomacy until common sense prevails on the issue [of Eastern Mediterranean],” Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, following the Cabinet meeting in the capital Ankara.
“We are always here and ready to resolve conflicts through dialogue on equitable basis,” Erdogan added.
Erdogan also called on the Mediterranean countries to cooperate in finding “an acceptable formula that protects the rights of all.”
“No way Turkey would consent to any initiative trying to lock the country to its shores, ignoring the vast Turkish territory,” Erdogan said.
Last month, after Athens objected to Ankara’s seismic survey in an area south of the island of Meis, or Kastellorizo, German diplomatic efforts helped defuse tension between Turkey and Greece.
But Greece’s controversial move last week to sign a maritime delimitation agreement with Egypt, which Turkey says violates its continental shelf and maritime rights, has further sparked tension between the two neighbors.
Turkey also announced on Monday that its seismic vessel Oruc Reis will conduct research in the region until Aug. 23.
Ankara accuses Greece of pursuing maximalist policies in the Eastern Mediterranean and underlines that its maritime claims violate Turkey’s sovereign rights.
Turkey has long contested the Greek Cypriot administration’s unilateral drilling in the Eastern Mediterranean, asserting that the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) also has rights to the resources in the area.
Fighting pandemic
Erdogan said Turkey ranks 73rd in the number of COVID-19 cases per million people and 57th in the death rate per million people.
“When this period [pandemic] ends, Turkey will be among the least damaged countries globally,” he added.
“Turkey will write a new success story using its geographical location, logistics network connections, manufacturing capacity, human resources, knowledge, and skills within the new world order that will form after the pandemic.”
The coronavirus pandemic has claimed over 732,600 lives in 188 countries and regions since it originated in China last December.
The US, Brazil, India, and Russia are currently the worst-hit countries in the world.
More than 19.94 million COVID-19 cases have been reported worldwide, with recoveries exceeding 12.15 million, according to figures compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University.