There have been two main developments in Turkey-EU relations in the last few months, especially after the German parliamentary elections in late September.
Talal Silo, a former high-ranking commander and spokesman of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an umbrella group whose core is formed of troops from the People’s Protection Units (YPG), recently gave a substantial interview to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency. He was speaking almost a month after defecting from the SDF.
Two separate processes have put additional stress on the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). The first is the ongoing case in New York, in which Turkish-Iranian gold trader Reza Zarrab revealed the details of a scheme that enabled him and his conspirators to bypass U.S. sanctions on Iran.
While all eyes were on New York for the “U.S. vs. Mehmet Hakan Atilla” case that was about to begin, the head of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu revealed documents of multi-million dollar transactions of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s family members to an overseas account.
On Nov. 18, the Ankara Governor’s Office issued a statement announcing an effective ban on all public events related to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) issues, including all films, exhibitions and demonstrations. Security concerns and “public sensitivities” were cited as major reasons for the ban.
Russian President Vladimir Putin will host the Turkish and Iranian presidents, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Hassan Rouhani on Nov. 22 in Sochi. It is a key summit at which the Syrian issue will be discussed from A to Z.
The pace of efforts to end the years-long Syrian civil war through a political solution has recently entered a state of constant acceleration. Several factors are contributing to this.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held their sixth in-person meeting on Nov. 13 in Sochi, in an obvious indication of close cooperation and dialogue between the two countries since ties were repaired in mid-2016.
On the 79th anniversary of the death of our dear founding leader, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the whole nation once again had the chance to reflect on the value and importance of the objectives and aspirations he outlined for this young country.
