Jan 24 Hungary is the last holdout for Sweden’s NATO membership. So when will Orbán follow Turkey’s lead? By Justin Spike, Associated Press After more than a year of delays, and consistent urging from its Western partners to move forward with Sweden's application, the Central European country and its conservative populist prime minister, Viktor Orbán, are once again in the spotlight. Continue reading
Jan 23 Turkey approves Sweden’s membership bid to join NATO By Suzan Fraser, Associated Press Turkish legislators have started debating a long-delayed bill to approve Sweden's bid to join NATO, in a step that could remove a major hurdle for the previously nonaligned Nordic country's entry into the military alliance. Continue reading
Jan 13 Turkey strikes at Kurdish militants in Iraq and Syria after deadly military base attack By Andrew Wilks, Associated Press Turkey carried out airstrikes targeting Kurdish militants in neighboring Iraq and Syria on Saturday, the Turkish Defense Ministry said, a day after an attack on a Turkish military base in Iraq killed nine Turkish soldiers. Continue reading
Jan 06 Blinken makes stops in Turkey, Greece as he tries to prevent expansion of Israel-Hamas war By Matthew Lee, Associated Press U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with the leaders of Turkey and Greece on Saturday during the opening stops of his latest Mideast diplomatic mission as fears grow that Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza may expand into a broader conflict. Continue reading
Jan 02 Turkey detains 33 people suspected of spying for Israel By Associated Press The report comes weeks after the head of Israel's domestic security agency said his organization was prepared to destroy Hamas "in every place," including in Lebanon, Turkey and Qatar. Continue reading
Dec 26 Here’s what to know about Turkey’s decision to move forward with Sweden’s bid to join NATO By Suzan Fraser, Associated Press NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at the alliance’s summit meeting in July that Sweden had agreed “to support actively the efforts to reinvigorate Turkey’s EU accession process.”… Continue reading
Nov 06 Blinken caps off frantic Mideast visit with limited progress on Gaza ‘humanitarian pauses’ support By Matthew Lee, Associated Press The top U.S. diplomat hopes that pauses in the war would allow for a surge of humanitarian aid to Gaza and the release of hostages captured by Hamas during the militants' deadly Oct. 7 incursion, while also preventing the conflict… Continue reading
Oct 24 Hungary in the spotlight after Turkey approves Sweden’s bid to join NATO By Justin Spike, Associated Press The delay on Tuesday comes as Hungary remains the main hurdle to Sweden's admission into NATO after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan submitted a protocol to Turkey's parliament on Monday to approve its admission. Continue reading
Oct 23 Turkey’s Erdogan takes key step toward ratifying Sweden’s NATO admission By Suzan Fraser, Associated Press All 31 NATO allies must endorse Sweden’s membership. Turkey and Hungary have yet to ratify it. Continue reading
Oct 12 NATO Secretary-General Stoltenberg presses Turkey to advance Sweden’s membership application By Lorne Cook, Associated Press Stoltenberg is pressing Turkey to quickly ratify Sweden's membership in the military organization. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said three months ago that he would help hasten the process in the Turkish parliament. Continue reading