SOURCE: GEOPOLITICS ALERT
ANKARA (TM) – FOUR POLITICAL PARTIES IN THE TURKISH PARLIAMENT ISSUED A JOINT STATEMENT ON FRIDAY CALLING FOR THE EXTRADITION FROM THE US OF TURKISH-ISLAMIC CLERIC FETHULLAH GÜLEN, WHO IS ACCUSED BY THE TURKISH GOVERNMENT OF MASTERMINDING A FAILED COUP ATTEMPT ON JULY 15, 2016.
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), the Republican People’s Party (CHP), the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and the ?Y? (Good) Party said the US should take the necessary steps as soon as possible for Gülen’s extradition to Turkey.

Only the Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) dissented.

Erdo?an accuses Gülen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in the US for almost two decades, of masterminding the failed coup, which claimed the lives of 249 people, although Gülen strongly denies any involvement in the abortive putsch.

After three days of intense negotiations in Ankara, US and Turkish officials reached an agreement on Wednesday to create a joint operations center and set up a safe zone east of the Euphrates in north eastern Syria. Deal details have not yet been disclosed.

This last minute deal between Washington and Ankara is in response to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s announcement on Sunday that Turkey was prepared to carry out a unilateral cross-border operation to push back Kurdish militias on the Syrian Turkish border east of the Euphrates river, if the Washington didn’t cut ties with the Kurdish militias and create a safe zone in northern Syria.

The US and Turkey have reached a deal on Wednesday, according to both sides, which is intended to reduce the risk of Turkey invading northern Syria. The deal will establish an operations center for a “safe zone” in northern Syria.

The safe zone is intended to span 250 miles of northeastern border of Syria and Turkey, and will be carved more or less entirely out of Kurdish-held territory. The deal is meant to allow Syrian refugees to return through this “peace corridor.”

SOURCE: ZEROHEDGE

Turkey has for days been poised to unilaterally invade northern Syria over US objections, which Ankara officials say is to establish a 32 kilometer (20 mile) inside the war torn country, giving Turkey complete control of a region where the Syrian Kurdish YPG operates (People's Protection Units). Turkey has long considered the US-backed group, which forms the core of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), to be a terrorist extension of the outlawed PKK.

The Pentagon has condemned the impending Turkish unilateral move, with US Defense Secretary Mark Esper telling reporters early Tuesday that it would be unacceptable and thwarted by Washington, though it's unclear how far the Pentagon would be willing to go. "What we're going to do is prevent unilateral incursions that would upset, again, these mutual interests that the United States, Turkey and the SDF share with regard to northern Syria," Esper said.

Germany's point-blank refusal to support Washington's proposal for a maritime protection force in the Arabian Gulf to protect shipping from attacks by Iran is yet another example of Berlin's diplomatic and economic sabotage of the Western alliance.

Following the recent upsurge in Iranian aggression in the all-important Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf shipping artery through which flows one-fifth of the world's energy needs, Washington has sought international backing for Operation Sentinel, its naval operation to protect shipping in the region.

This search follows a series of Iranian attacks, including the shooting down of a US Navy drone operating in international waters in the Strait of Hormuz, as well as a number of attacks against merchant shipping, such as last month's seizure of the British-registered oil tanker Stena Impero.

In what would be Turkey’s third cross-border military operation in Syria since the war began, in as many years, Erdogan announced on Sunday that he would be launching a military operation east of the Euphrates river, to push back Kurdish militias on Turkey’s southern border.

Although Erdogan did not set a timeframe, preparations have been underway for well over a month. Increased deployment of Turkish military forces along with weaponry, and tanks, etc. have been reported by various sources, on the Turkish side of the southern border with Syria.

Preparations are also underway by Kurdish militias, to counter any possible Turkish aggression. Both sides have said that if the other attacks they will be ready to respond.

SOURCE: MIDDLE EAST MONITOR
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has publicly announced the decision to launch a long-awaited military operation in Syria, east of the Euphrates River, and said that the United States (US) and Russia have been warned and provided with the information necessary.

Speaking at an inauguration ceremony in the north-western city of Bursa yesterday, Erdogan stated that “We entered Afrin, Jarabulus, and Al-Bab, and now we’re going to enter east of the Euphrates,” adding that “We shared this with the US and Russia.”

The military operation has been highly speculated on in recent weeks following talks between Turkish military figures such as Minister of Defence Hulusi Akar and US Envoy to Syria James Jeffreys regarding a proposed safe zone in northern Syria. At the start of the talks in July, Turkey warned that it would conduct the operation if an agreement was not reached for the establishment of the zone.

Turkey’s Interior Minister has threatened to “open the floodgates” to mass migration into Europe, warning, “No European government will be able to survive for more than six months.”

Back in March 2016, the EU agreed to allow Turkish citizens visa-free travel to the European Union and begin a pathway for Turkey to join the EU in return for Ankara stemming the flow of migrants into Europe.

However, the EU has failed to deliver on the promise, prompting Turkey to assert that it will back out of the deal.

“European officials say that although Turkey has fulfilled most of their conditions, it has failed to comply with the most important one: relaxing its stringent anti-terrorism laws, which are being used to silence critics of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan,” writes Soeren Kern.

Israel secretly lobbied the US to block Turkey from purchasing its F-35 fighter jets in an effort to maintain its military edge in the region, according to Israeli media reports.

Tel Aviv began urging the White House to drop Ankara from its F-35 program soon after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan approved the purchase of the S-400 missile defence system from Russia, Israeli Channel 12 reported yesterday.

“It put pressure on Washington to cancel the sale of advanced aircraft to Turkey,” it said.

Turkey was suspended from the F-35 program in July, with the US administration claiming the Russian S-400 would compromise the security of its F-35 jets. Turkey denies the claim, adding that for years it tried unsuccessfully to buy US Patriot missile defence before it turned to the S-400s.

According to the Turkish National Defense Ministry, receipt of the first batch of Russian S-400 missile defense systems was completed on July 25th. Besides making headlines all around the world and causing a harsh response from the US, the delivery demonstrated Turkey’s readiness to provide independent defense and foreign policies in its own interests despite all the difficulties that it may face on this path.

The Russian S-400 missile defense system, according to Stratfor, is the “best all-around.” It is approximately 30 years in the making, as development began in the late 1980s, and it was officially announced in 1993.

Despite the continued US pressure to expel Turkey from the F-35 fighter jet programme over its agreement to purchase Russian S-400s, Washington failed to persuade Ankara to take the “right decision”. The Turkish leadership has demonstrated the rigidity of Turkey’s position and intent to follow a policy of multipolarity in international relations.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has condemned Israel and its enabling allies over “state terror… in Palestine,” declaring, “Whoever is on Israel’s side, let everyone know that we are against them.”

“We do not approve of silence on the state terror that Israel blatantly carries out in Palestine,” Erdogan said on Sunday, addressing senior provincial officials of his Justice and Development Party in Ankara, according to Iranian PressTV.

US Republican Senators are meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House to discuss potential sanctions on Turkey as a response to its procurement of the Russian S-400 air defence systems, a White House press pool report revealed.

"Per [White House], list of senators who came to [White House] for meeting on potential Turkish sanctions," the pool report said on Tuesday.

The Sunshine State News reported earlier that US Senator Rick Scott ahead of the meeting said he wanted to propose a resolution that calls on the United States and its allies "to discuss the future role of Turkey in NATO given its engagement with Russia."

President Donald Trump must impose sanctions on Ankara for accepting Russian S-400 defence systems or US measures against Moscow will suffer, top Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee said in a letter.

Earlier in the day, the US president met with dozens of Republican senators in the White House to discuss the possibility of imposing sanctions on Turkey. Trump last week said his administration would not sell F-35 stealth fighters to Turkey but stopped short of announcing sanctions under a 2017 law that penalizes dealings with the Russian military.

"We believe that a strong response to Turkish President Erdogan’s acceptance of the Russian S400 air defence system must be delivered because, without decisive action by the United States, our position in NATO and the strength of our sanctions regime on Russia will suffer," US Senators Mike Menendez and Chris Murphy said in a letter to Trump on Tuesday that was signed by eight other Democrats.

In October 1950, as U.S. forces were reeling from hordes of Chinese troops who had intervened massively in the Korean War, a 5,000-man Turkish brigade arrived to halt an onslaught by six Chinese divisions.

Said supreme commander General Douglas MacArthur: “The Turks are the hero of heroes. There is no impossibility for the Turkish Brigade.”

President Harry Truman awarded the brigade a Presidential Unit Citation.

In 1951, Turkey ended a neutrality dating back to the end of World War I and joined NATO. In the seven decades since, there has been no graver crisis in U.S.-Turkish relations than the one that erupted this week.

Turkey has just received the first components of a Russian S-400 air and missile defense system, despite U.S. warnings that this would require the cancelation of Turkey’s purchase of 100 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters.

A defiant Turkey said it was considering “alternatives” to US fighter jets, including Russian models or making its own, a day after Washington suspended it from a programme to build and deploy advanced warplanes.

The US punished Turkey for its purchase of a Russian air defence system by pushing it out of a long-term programme to upgrade Nato forces with F-35 advanced fighter jets.

The Kremlin quickly attempted to exploit the disagreement, which has already drawn Ankara closer to Moscow, offering to sell Turkey Russian fighter planes.

Ismail Demir, head of Turkey’s defence industries, responded that “all kinds of options are on the table,” according to the official Anadolu news agency.

“Turkey will continue to evaluate alternatives,” he said.

Russia is ready to discuss supplying Su-35 fighter jets to Turkey, the head of the state-owned Rostec corporation said in a statement yesterday.

“If our Turkish colleagues express a desire, we are ready to work out deliveries of Su-35 fighter jets,” Sergei Chemezov said, according to the statement.

He added that Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov had told the Intrafax news agency that there is a possibility for Moscow and Ankara to begin negotiations over the sale of Russian fighter jets.

This comes after Washington said on Wednesday that Ankara’s decision to purchase Russian S-400 missile defence systems “renders its continued involvement with the F-35 impossible”.

“Our military-to-military relationship is strong, and we will continue to cooperate with Turkey extensively, mindful of constraints due to the presence of the S-400 system in Turkey,” the US press secretary added.

Pentagon officials confirmed on Wednesday that Turkey has been removed from the F-35 fighter jet program, despite President Trump complaining about how “unfair” it was to America to have to do so just the day before.

US law established a mechanism for punishing other nations who buy weapons from Russia, and threatened Turkey time and against for buying the S-400. Turkey began taking delivery of the S-400, and that set the US move to ban them from accessing the F-35 jets.

Trump didn’t like this, because the F-35 isn’t exactly flying off the shelves and Turkey was a potential customer. Undersecretary of Defense Ellen Lord argued that all the nations partnered on the F-35 are “aligned in this decision to suspend Turkey.”

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu yesterday criticised the US deal of the century and emphasised the importance of supporting Palestinian rights, Turkish news agencies reported.

During his speech at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) executive committee meeting held in Saudi Arabia, Cavusoglu said sustainable peace cannot be achieved by disregarding the Palestinians’ dignity and ignoring “the just and legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people.”

Referring to the US economic workshop held in Bahrain last month, he said: “Economic projects and plans cannot replace the need for dignity, justice and freedom. And no project can succeed without a just peace.”

He added: “Expansion of illegal settlements continues throughout the occupied Palestinian territory, including in and around Al-Quds, as well as in the West Bank. This is a deliberate attempt to undermine the two-state vision.”

Three people, including the Turkish deputy consul, have been killed in a shooting at a restaurant in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, according to local media. Police confirmed the death of the Turkish diplomat.

The shooting was reported shortly after 2pm local time, and took place at a restaurant in an upmarket area of Iraqi Kurdistan’s capital city. While local media reported that all three victims were officials with the Consulate General, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry only confirmed the death of one diplomat.

ERIC ZUESSE, ORIGINALLY POSTED AT THE SAKER
The success of Turkey’s takeover of Syria’s most pro-jihadist province, Idlib, is making less and less likely that Syria will be able to continue maintaining Idlib as being a part of Syria. (This is something I had predicted, back on 14 September 2018, to be possible or even likely, and now it is actually happening.) On July 10th, Reuters headlined “Assad hits a wall in Syrian war as front lines harden”, and reported that, “More than two months of Russian-backed operations in and around Idlib province have yielded little or nothing for Assad’s side. It marks a rare case of a military campaign that has not gone his way since Russia intervened in 2015. While resisting government attacks, the insurgents have managed to carve out small advances of their own, drawing on ample stocks of guided anti-tank missiles that opposition and diplomatic sources say have been supplied by Turkey.” It continues:

The first batch of S-400 missile system components arrived in Turkey on Friday, with at least five plane-loads of equipment making its way into the country by Sunday morning, and two more expected later in the day.

The S-400 deal with Russia is one of the most significant contracts in modern Turkish history, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has announced.

"The most important agreement in our history right now is the S-400 agreement," Erdogan said, speaking to reporters at the presidential palace in Istanbul on Sunday, Turkish outlet Haberler has reported.

Lately not a week passes without some dismal news involving Turkey hitting the tape, and yet the lira continues to levitate, blissfully ignorant of the storm clouds headed for Ankara, levitating on hopes the Fed will cut rates and sprinkle golden showers on emerging markets. However, in light of the two latest developments, the Mrs Watanabe sellers of USDTRY may finally pay attention.

On Sunday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan - who last weekend fired the head of the central bank for not cutting rates fast enough, and who has now become the de facto head of the CBRT - promised "significantly lower interest rates by the end of the year", Bloomberg reported.

Turkey has just called Donald Trump’s bluff by going ahead with the purchase of Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missiles. The outrage in Washington is volcanic. Trump is vowing to rain fire and brimstone sanctions down on the disobedient Turks.

The S-400 is Russia’s premier anti-air missile. It is believed highly effective against all forms of aircraft – including stealth planes – cruise missiles, medium range ballistic missiles, drones, and some other types of missiles. It offers the choice of a self-directing version with its own radar seeker, or a less expensive, ‘semi-active’ version that is guided by its launch-battery radar.

What makes this AA missile (SS-21 in NATO terminology) particularly deadly is its remarkable 400 km range. The S-400 is said by Russia to be able to unmask stealth aircraft. I’ve been told by Soviet security officials as far back as 1990 that their radars could detect US stealth aircraft.

Turkey is taking delivery of Russia’s S 400 missile defence system. What this signifies is that Turkey and Russia are now “officially” allies. The first shipment of the S-400 landed in Ankara on July 12, according to Turkey’s Ministry of Defense. (see image below)

Two more shipments are due, with the third delivery of “over 120 anti-aircraft missiles of various types… [scheduled] tentatively at the end of the summer, by sea.”

Reports confirm that the “Turkish S-400 operators will travel to Russia for training in July and August. About 20 Turkish servicemen underwent training at a Russian training center in May and June, …” (CNN, July 12, 2019)

After months of angrily condemning Turkey for buying the S-400 missile system from Russia over American alternatives, the Trump Administration broadly refused comment on Friday, as Turkey started taking the delivery of the first missiles in the system.

Acting Defense Secretary Mark Esper declined comment, but report are suggesting that US officials are in generally discussing possible ways to “punish” Turkey for buying Russian, even though Turkey was under no obligation to buy American arms.

reportedly in the eastern Anatolian city of Malatya as well as the capital of Ankara.

Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov announced of the provocative transfer which has for the past year been met with condemnation by the United States - including the threat of sanctions and blockage of F-35s to Turkey - that “Deliveries of Russian S-400 complexes to Turkey are carried out as planned.”

Turkey and Europe are headed for a showdown in the eastern Mediterranean over Turkish plans for oil and gas exploration and drilling in Cypriot-recognized waters, with the European Union reportedly now mulling cutting financial assistance to Turkey over the illegal drilling. EU envoys are reportedly meeting Wednesday to discuss various punitive measures against Turkey, including suspending aviation talks and even sanctions.

The latest crisis was triggered after Turkish drilling vessel Yavuz sailed to an area off Cyprus’ east coast at the start of this week — the second to follow a first drilling vessel, Fatih, which had already been exploring in Cypriot waters. Notably, the vessels have been accompanied by the Turkish military, including drones, F-16 fighters, and warships.

Libya was once a key embarkation point for jihadists headed to foreign battlefields - first in the 1980s Afghan-Soviet War where they supported the CIA-backed mujahideen, and more recently in Syria, where both massive jihadist manpower and heavy weaponry were transferred to the killing fields of Aleppo and Idlib (also, it should be noted, in support of CIA regime change efforts against Assad).

But as we described after a recent New York Times report unveiled that US anti-tank missiles have been found in "unknown" Libyan rebel hands fighting within warlord Khalifa Haftar's ranks, the once stable formerly Gadaffi-ruled Arab North African country which was in 2011 "liberated" at the hands of US-NATO forces has once again become ground zero in a grinding proxy war which has allowed jihadists to run rampant amid the chaos.

Turkish police have taken five people into custody over the smuggling of a highly-radioactive substance used to build nuclear weapons and power nuclear reactors. The 18.1-gram haul was found in a car.

Police discovered a vial of the material after they pulled over a car in the northwestern Bolu province. The substance, believed to be californium, was found stashed under the gear stick wrapped in a bag. Officers had to cut the upholstery to get to the parcel, which is estimated to be worth US$72 million.

SOURCE: ZEROHEDGE
Libya was once a key embarkation point for jihadists headed to foreign battlefields - first in the 1980s Afghan-Soviet War where they supported the CIA-backed mujahideen, and more recently in Syria, where both massive jihadist manpower and heavy weaponry were transferred to the killing fields of Aleppo and Idlib (also, it should be noted, in support of CIA regime change efforts against Assad).

But as we described after a recent New York Times report unveiled that US anti-tank missiles have been found in "unknown" Libyan rebel hands fighting within warlord Khalifa Haftar's ranks, the once stable formerly Gadaffi-ruled Arab North African country which was in 2011 "liberated" at the hands of US-NATO forces has once again become ground zero in a grinding proxy war which has allowed jihadists to run rampant amid the chaos.

The first shipment of Russian S-400 air defense systems to Turkey are set to be delivered to the NATO member country next week, Turkish media say.

The initial S-400 delivery will be made on two cargo planes departing from a Russian military air base on Sunday, privately-owned Haberturk TV reported Friday, adding that a Russian technical team tasked with overseeing the system’s installation is also due to arrive in Turkey by Monday.

This comes amid Washington’s threat that Turkey will be subjected to sanctions when the Russian air defense missile systems ordered by Ankara are actually delivered to its NATO ally.

Turkey and the US have been at loggerheads over Ankara’s decision to purchase the S-400s, which Washington claims are not compatible with defenses of the NATO military alliance and would also compromise American F-35 fighter jets, which Turkey has purchased and also helps build.

A stray Russian-made missile apparently launched by Syria hit the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus overnight, officials say.

Foreign Minister Kudret Ozersay said the air defence missile was thought to have been launched during suspected Israeli air strikes on Syria.

The projectile struck a mountainside north of Nicosia, 225km (140 miles) from the Syrian coast, sparking a fire.

We've noted before that Libya's new civil war has increasingly come out in the open as in reality an international proxy war, with even the White House in the past months "switching" support from the UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli to the renegade General Khalifa Haftar, whose LNA forces have for months laid siege to the capital in an attempt to wrest the country from GNA authority.

And to nobody's surprise, advanced American-made anti-tank missiles believed supplied by the UAE have recently been found among Haftar's weapons stockpiles. All of this makes Gen. Haftar's latest "declaration of war" on Turkey more interesting. Over the weekend the LNA threatened to shoot down Turkish airplanes found in Libyan air space and to destroy Turkish ships off the Libyan coast, in response to Turkish military support to GNA forces in Tripoli, which resulted in a significant setback for pro-Haftar militants.

As fierce gun battles continued in Idlib, Syria’s Foreign Minister demanded the withdrawal of Turkish troops in the region.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said in a press briefing Tuesday that his country considers Turkey’s military presence in parts of northern Syria as illegal. Muallem then demanded neighboring Turkey to withdraw its troops from the Syrian territories. Yet he asserted that Syria is not interested in a military showdown with Turkey.

Muallem’s remarks came on the sidelines of his five-day visit to the Chinese capital of Beijing, where he met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi. Muallem held a press conference with Wang Yi where he made the remarks regarding Turkey’s presence in Syria.

On June 16, Turkey said on that its forces had struck positions of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) in response to an attack on one of its observation posts in the Idlib de-escalation zone.

According to the Turkish Defense Ministry, the SAA shelled one of its posts near Murak in northern Hama. The defense ministry described the attack as “deliberate” and said that it had caused a material damage.

Syrian pro-government sources confirmed that the SAA positions near Tell Bazzam and al-Kabariyah were shelled by Turkish artillery. The sources claimed that the Turkish observation post near Murak was the source of the fire.

Turkey is in the process of building its own fifth generation stealth fighter jet and is set to open it up for display for the first time at the International Paris Airshow, which opens today and ends Sunday.

In its statement released on Thursday, Turkish Aerospace announced that it will display for the first time “the one-to-one mock-up of the Turkish Fighter” that has been “initiated to meet the needs of Turkish Armed Force, which is the prime contractor of Turkish Aerospace.”

By producing the fifth generation fighter jet aircraft, the company stated that “Turkey will demonstrate once again its infrastructure, technologies and abilities…which is therefore considered invaluable to a leading power like the USA, Russia and China.”

Turkey is determined to acquire Russian-made S-400 SAMs despite US threats, says Erdogan Karakus, a retired Turkish Air Force lieutenant-general, explaining why Ankara does not consider the US' MIM-104 Patriot system to be a substitute for the S-400.

The US and NATO are continuing to exert pressure on Turkey over its planned acquisition of S-400 Triumf anti-aircraft missile systems, arguing that the weapon is incompatible with the NATO missile defence system and poses a security threat to the bloc.

Foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said: "If the United States takes any negative actions towards us, we will also take reciprocal steps.

"We are determined on the S-400 issue. No matter what the results will be, we will not take a step back.”

The minister added that it is impossible to cancel the order from Russia.

Two weeks ago, when Trump started rolling out tariffs left and right as a political punishment weapon for any sovereigns who presented hurdles to
Next on Trump’s train of terrifying tariffs: Turkey.

The reason is simple: Turkey's now official stance that it would proceed with concluding the Russian S-400 missile deal despite vocal opposition from both the US president and Congress. And now, Turkey, too, is bracing for what now appears inevitable as it refuses to budge on its commitment to the Kremlin.

Overnight, Turkey said it would hold firm in its commitment to honor its purchase of Russian air defense systems, warning the US that it is prepared to take "reciprocal steps" in reply to any sanctions imposed by Washington, effectively admitting that sanctions by the White House are only a matter of time.

Global Research Editor’s Note:

First published in May 2015, this article reveals not only that the ISIS is a creation of US intelligence, it also confirms that the Caliphate Project was designed in Washington.

The newly-declassified document continues:

Yes, you read that correctly:

… there is the possibility of establishing a declared or undeclared Salafist Principality in eastern Syria (Hasaka and Der Zor), and this is exactly what the supporting powers to the opposition want, in order to isolate the Syrian regime ….

In other words, the powers supporting the Syrian opposition – the West, our Gulf allies, and Turkey wanted an Islamic caliphate in order to challenge Syrian president Assad.

Sure, top U.S. generals – and vice president Vice President Joe Biden – have said that America’s closest allies support ISIS. And mainstream American media have called for direct support of ISIS.

Turkey has been given a deadline of the end of July to choose between buying US fighter jets and Russian anti-aircraft missile systems.

Acting US Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan set out the ultimatum in a letter to his Turkish counterpart, Hulusi Akar.

Turkey, he said, could not have both America's F-35 advanced fighter jets and Russia's S-400 systems.

The two Nato allies have been locked in a row over the S-400 for months.

America argues that the Russian systems are both incompatible with Nato defence systems and pose a security threat, and wants Turkey to buy its Patriot anti-aircraft systems instead.

Turkey, which has been pursuing an increasingly independent defence policy, has signed up to buying 100 F-35s, and has invested heavily in the F-35 programme, with Turkish companies producing 937 of the plane's parts.

At least eight were killed, and five were wounded in recent violence:

Relatives of a young man shot to death at his farm in Rabango, abutting the Turkish border, say that the shots were fired across the border by Turkish security forces. The man traveled with two friends to the farmland that the three of them own, when they came under fire. They may have been mistaken for smugglers or Kurdish guerrillas.

In Mergarash, three people were injured when Turkish jets bombed their farm. The victims are two brothers and their cousin. The trio also belong to the Peshmerga security forces, but that does not appear to be a factor in this attack.

Militants wounded two soldiers during an attack in Buhriz.

Just three and a half years ago, on January 20, 2016, the Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan had good reason to congratulate himself. He had successfully arranged a scheme of payoffs for two men who were intimate advisors to the presidents of the United States and Russia — at the very same time. They were Lieutenant-General Michael Flynn, the National Security Advisor to Donald Trump; and Dmitry Peskov, the spokesman for Vladimir Putin.

A suicide car bomb attack in a northwestern Syrian town held by Turkish-backed rebels has killed at least 14 people and wounded dozens, a war monitor said. It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack.

On Thursday over five Russian fighter jets began launching airstrikes over the Idlib Governorate following the collapse of ceasefire talks with Turkey.

According to a military source in northwestern Syria, the ceasefire talks collapsed after Turkey demanded that the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) withdraw from all the areas they captured in northwestern Hama.

The Russian military reportedly rejected Turkey’s demands and restarted their aerial campaign over the Idlib province.

A former NASA scientist who was imprisoned in Turkey after the failed 2016 coup has been set free. His release comes amid faltering negotiations between Washington and Ankara over the F-35 fighter jet.

Serkan Golge, a dual Turkish-American citizen jailed more than two years ago, was released from custody Wednesday, the scientist’s wife confirmed to reporters.

“I just talked to him on the phone. He is going back to his family,” she told the New York Times. “He was shocked.”

Golge – formerly a NASA research scientist who worked in Houston, Texas – was imprisoned while visiting family in southern Turkey in 2016, just weeks after a coup plot roiled the country. Authorities said Golge worked for Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen, who is accused of orchestrating the failed coup plot and considered a terrorist by the Turkish government.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar says the delivery of advanced Russian built S-400 air defense missile systems to his country “might be delayed until after June” irrespective of US pressure and threats of imposing sanctions on Ankara over the purchase of the military hardware.

“They may not catch June, but will arrive in following months. The process has started,” Akar said in an exclusive interview with local Turkish-language Haberturk television news network.

Turkey has sent its servicemen to Russia for training on S-400 missile system despite pressure from the US. Press TV's correspondent in Istanbul Rahshan Saglam has more in this report.

Turkey has launched a cross-border operation into neighboring Iraq against Kurdish militants in a mountainous northern region of the country.

The Turkish defense ministry confirmed its military unleashed a barrage of artillery fire and air strikes on Monday afternoon before ground forces entered northern Iraq to “demolish the caves and shelters that are being used by terrorist groups and to eliminate terrorists” — a reference to the outlawed PKK.

In mid-January 2018, the Turkish General Staff announced the beginning of Olive Branch Operation. The goal was to oust the Kurds from the outskirts of Afrin, as well as to create a buffer zone along the Syrian-Turkish border.

These steps were sharply criticized by the world community, but Ankara hastened to declare that the presence of its troops in Syria was temporary.

Erdogan promised to return these territories to Syrians. Indeed, the fighting stopped on March 20 2018, after capturing Afrin when several hundred Kurds were killed and wounded. However, now it looks like Turkey is not going to leave the occupied territory.

Kurdistan 24 TV channel recently published information that the Ankara government is building a concrete wall around the city of Afrin to isolate it from its surroundings.

he United States is giving Turkey until the end of the first week of June to pull out of its agreement with Russia to purchase the S-400 air defence system or face severe consequences including sanctions, media reported.

If Turkey fails to pull out of its agreement with Russia and does not purchase the US-made Patriot missile defence system by the end of the first week of June, it will face negative consequences, NBC News reported on Tuesday, citing multiple sources familiar with the situation.

The consequences include removing Turkey from the F-35 jet program, forfeiting 100 promised F-35 jets originally designated for the country, and imposing sanctions on Turkey — all of which could hurt Ankara’s standing with NATO, the report said.

In mid-January 2018, the Turkish General Staff announced the beginning of Olive Branch Operation. The goal was to oust the Kurds from the outskirts of Afrin, as well as to create a buffer zone along the Syrian-Turkish border.

These steps were sharply criticized by the world community, but Ankara hastened to declare that the presence of its troops in Syria was temporary. Erdogan promised to return these territories to Syrians. Indeed, the fighting stopped on March 20 2018, after capturing Afrin when several hundred Kurds were killed and wounded. However, now it looks like Turkey is not going to leave the occupied territory.

For months, the Trump administration had been warning, at first, then outright threatening Turkey against following through with an agreement struck last year to purchase the advanced Russian S-400 missile defense system, and despite several "fake news" reports that Erdogan had canceled the deal with Moscow, Turkey ultimately said it would go ahead and receive the Russian missiles, demonstrative flipping off its NATO allies.

But if Erdogan was hoping that Trump would be all bark and no bite when it comes to retaliating against this painfully obvious snub of its "western" allies, well he had another thing coming.

Late on Thursday, the Turkish lira suddenly tumbled when Washington made it clear that this aggression will not stand, and the White House said it had terminated a preferential trade agreement with Turkey, finding the country no longer needed help as a developing country. However, the US did halve tariffs on Turkish steel from 50% to 25%.

Turkey's Erdogan says de-escalation deal signed with Russia at risk as Syrian government presses on with Idlib assault.

The so-called “Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham” (ISIS) released a video on Thursday showing two Turkish soldiers being burnt alive in eastern Aleppo.

The two Turkish soldiers appeared in the video inside of a cage while still wearing their battle fatigues; they would then answer questions from their captors before being burnt alive minutes later.

The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) shelled an observation post of the Turkish military around the town of Shir Mughar in the northwestern Hama countryside with more than 13 artillery rounds in the noon of May 12, according to claims by several opposition sources.

The sources released a photo showing white smoke raising from the post’s outskirt. However, they are yet to provide an evidence confirming that the army was being the shelling.

Turkey's economic and currency implosion is getting worse by the day.

With investors increasingly concerned about Turkey's level of FX reserves and ability to defend the currency, on Wednesday ABN-Amro analyst Nora Neuteboom poured gasoline on the fire saying what everyone else already knows, namely that "given the relatively low reserves, Turkey cannot afford to deplete its reserves further by defending the currency," adding that "as investors are well aware of this fact, a little spark in, for example the tensions with the U.S., could easily trigger another lira sell-off."

Of course, with the Turkish lira already in freefall, we may not even need a spark, as the rout gets worse with every passing day.

Turkey’s debt problem, coupled with the plummeting lira, is arguably the most important risk factor for the nation’s economy.

To make matters worse, far from it posing a threat just to Turkey itself, it also has the potential to inflict significant damage elsewhere too, starting with key economies in the Eurozone.

At first glance, the situation in Turkey might resemble many past similar scenarios of a heavily indebted nation with a plummeting currency that descends into a severe recession and eventually gets bailed out, like Greece.

Turkey's state media says election officials ordered Istanbul's mayoral election redone, nullifying the opposition candidate Ekrem Imamoglu's win.

“Istanbul elections are being renewed," Recep Ozel, the ruling party’s representative on Turkey’s elections board, says via Twitter.

As Bloomberg reports, the High Election Board’s verdict, which is final, came after a vote on whether to nullify the vote based on the ruling party’s allegation that there were widespread irregularities in the March 31 vote, which Erdogan’s candidate lost. The decision fueled concerns about the democratic foundations of Middle East’s largest economy and the prospect of more political turmoil.

The result is dramatic and immediate - a collapse in the lira...

Turkey has hinted that it may send in military forces to the Syrian border region of Tel Rifaat despite an agreement with Russia to stay clear of the area.

Turkey’s Vice President Fuat Oktay made the comments in an interview with broadcaster Kanal 7 on Sunday, a day after cross-border fire from the region claimed the life of a Turkish trooper.

“The agreement was for us to stop there (Tel Rifaat), but if these attacks continue, this may take a different shape. We are discussing this with Russia,” Oktay said, without providing further details.

The US has urged Turkey to reconsider its decision to start offshore drilling operations in Cyprus, according to a statement, reports Anadolu Agency.

“The United States is deeply concerned by Turkey’s announced intentions to begin offshore drilling operations in an area claimed by the Republic of Cyprus as its Exclusive Economic Zone,” Morgan Ortagus, spokesperson for the US Department State said in a statement on Sunday.

“This step is highly provocative and risks raising tensions in the region,” Ortagus added. “We urge Turkish authorities to halt these operations and encourage all parties to act with restraint,” it said.

The Idlib de-escalation zone and the northern part of Aleppo province are now two main sources of instability in Syria.

On May 4, the pro-Turkish National Syrian Army (NSA), backed by Turkish special forces, launched a surprise attack on positions of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in northern Aleppo. The NSA briefly captured the town of Ma’arnaz, but then were forced to retreat under pressure from the YPG.

Later on the same day, the so-called Afrin Liberation Forces (ALF) released a statement claiming that at least 40 NSA members were killed and 30 others were injured in clashes for Ma’arnaz. These claims are not based on any visual evidence.

The Pentagon says it will halt manufacturing support for the F-35 fighter jet in Turkey unless Ankara scraps its plan to buy a Russian missile defense system.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan said the US was vehemently opposed to Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 anti-aircraft technology.

"If Turkey decides that the S-400 is a decision they want to go forward with, then we have to move work out of Turkey," Shanahan said.

Turkey has indicted a third US Consulate employee and his wife and daughter on charges of membership of a terrorist group, according to a copy of the indictment seen by Reuters, a move likely to further strain ties between Ankara and Washington.

One of two Emirati men detained in Turkey on suspicion of both spying and having possible ties to the Jamal Khashoggi embassy murder case has reportedly taken his own life in prison, according to government and media sources.
The man was arrested by Turkish authorities 10 days ago and was later formally charged with “military and political” and “international espionage.” He was found dead having apparently hanged himself in his cell in Silivri prison on the outskirts of Istanbul on Sunday.

Turkish authorities are now launching an investigation into the suspicious circumstances of the man’s death as he was being detained in solitary confinement.

The two men claimed they were Palestinian nationals but admitted to working on behalf of UAE intelligence, reports Al Jazeera. One of the two alleged UAE spies reportedly arrived in Turkey just two days after Khashoggi’s murder.

Turkey has indicted a third US Consulate employee and his wife and daughter on charges of membership of a terrorist group, according to a copy of the indictment seen by Reuters, a move likely to further strain ties between Ankara and Washington.

Nazmi Mete Canturk, a security officer at the US Consulate in Istanbul, and his wife and daughter are accused in the indictment of links to the network of Fethullah Gulen, the US-based Muslim cleric blamed by Ankara for a failed 2016 coup.

A Turkish prosecutor is seeking jail sentences for all three on charges of membership of an armed terrorist organisation, according to the indictment, which was completed on March 8 but has not been made public.

The guarantor states of the Astana process declared their intention to counter separatist plans against Syria this country, according to the joint statement of Russia, Iran and Turkey. It was released on Friday after a regular round of negotiations in Nur-Sultan, TASS reports. The three states confirmed their commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Syria.

A Russian official said Wednesday that Moscow will start delivering its S-400 missile defense systems to Turkey in July.

“Everything has been already discussed and agreed,” Alexander Mikheev, the head of Russian state arms exporter Rosoboronexport, told the Interfax news agency.

Vice President Mike Pence expressed his dismay with Turkey's decision to purchase an S-400 anti-aircraft missile defense system from Russia, revealing just how much this arms deal is an existential threat to NATO and U.S. dominance.

“Turkey's purchase of a $2.5 billion S-400 anti-aircraft missile system from Russia poses great danger to NATO and to the strength of this alliance,” Pence said. “Turkey must choose: Does it want to remain a critical partner in the most successful military alliance in the history of the world? Or does it want to risk the security of that partnership by making reckless decisions that undermine our alliance?”

In a move that is likely to rile up NATO member Turkey, the US has made a huge delivery of equipment to the Syrian Kurdish YPG, a group Turkey considers terrorists, and have long threatened to invade.

200 trucks crossed into Syria’s Deir Ezzor from neighboring Iraq. This is not a military shipment. Rather, it is building material and construction equipment intended to allow for reconstruction after the defeat of ISIS.

That’s the US version at least, but the inclusion of substantial excavation equipment is fueling concern, particularly in Turkey, that this is going to be used for mass tunnel digging across Syria, in anticipation of the Turkish invasion.

Just days after the shenanigans of the Turkish central bank were exposed for the entire world to see, when as the FT reported - at great danger to its Turkish subscriptions and the freedom of its reporters in Turkey - that the country's real FX reserves of $12 billion were half of the $24 billion represented if one stripped $12 billion in short-term swap-based borrowings from local central banks...

The mass media has been widely covering the details of the disastrous humanitarian situation in Rukban refugee camp over recent months. By the way, the crisis in other sites deserves more considerable attention. Al-Hol refugee camp located in Al-Hasakah province and run by the Syria Democratic Forces is one of them.
image – shipment of the U.S. military hardware on the way to Al-Hol

Every single day from 10 to 20 people, mainly women and children die due to the lack of drinking water, essential goods, and medicine. Only for the past two months, 250 children passed away in the camp. According to estimates, now more than 50,000 refugees reside there, although initially it was designed only for 25,000.

It turned out that the catastrophe of Al-Hol residents is caused by the illegal actions of the U.S. authorities. Their homes and shelters in the northern and north-eastern part of Syria have been destroyed by the indiscriminate airstrikes of the U.S.-led international coalition.

My main question here is if Turkey knows that F-35 is a....turkey? I am pretty sure Turks do. Of course, behind all this back-and-forth on S-400 are things much more substantial than even top-notch air defense for Turkey--namely massive economic developments in Eurasia. It is also obvious that Turks are now in the bargain mode with Russia across the whole spectrum of issues--gas, nuclear power, military, tourism, agriculture, to name a few--and that could be indicative of a tectonic shift in Turkey's geopolitical orientation but we cannot be sure 100% yet. On F-35 issue, however, one should not discount the possibility of Turks getting off at the last opportunity from this program in order for a bigger, better thing. This thing are SU-35 of latest modifications and SU-57 which is hitting serial production in 2020 and China expressing interest in this aircraft while already operating full Russian versions of SU-35.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has not handled his party’s poor performance in local elections well, and is continuing to try to find a way to fix the results, particularly in Istanbul. On Monday he suggested that the city may need to revote entirely.

Erdogan’s original plan was to recount all votes in Istanbul, but the High Election Board has rejected the bulk of the recount, allowing for only 51 total ballot boxes to be recounted in 21 districts.

Though Erdogan’s AKP actually did win a slim majority across the nation, the loss of Istanbul and Ankara was particularly embarrassing. Erdogan’s start as a mayor in Istanbul meant his party losing that city was quite a blow.

Two days after we reported that the US had halted delivery of equipment related to the stealthy F-35 fighter aircraft to Turkey as part of the ongoing rift over Erdogan's plans to move forward with taking delivery of the advanced Russian S-4000 anti-air defense system, on Wednesday the US escalated the war of words with its NATO ally when Vice President Mike Pence threatened Turkey’s future role in the NATO alliance, warning it against "reckless decisions," like following through with the purchase of the Russian-made air defense system.

“Turkey must choose. Does it want to remain a critical partner in the most successful military alliance in history or does it want to risk the security of that partnership by making such reckless decisions that undermine our @NATO alliance?,” Pence tweeted on Wednesday, after making similar remarks at a NATO summit in Washington.