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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hosted a family dinner in honour of Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Ankara, media reports said on Thursday.

Turkish First Lady Emine Erdogan and Begum Kalsoom Nawaz also joined the Wednesday dinner at the residence of the Turkish President, Geo TV reported.

Sharif, who arrived here on Wednesday on a three-day visit, will take part in the fifth meeting of the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) on Thursday.

He will co-chair the meeting with his Turkish counterpart Binali Yildirim. A number of MoUs are expected to be signed.

(Sharifs) visit to Turkey ... would further deepen the time-tested, unparalleled and historic ties between the two brotherly countries and would impart a strong impetus to their flourishing cooperation in diverse fields, the Pakistan Foreign Office said.

Sharifs delegation to Turkey includes minister for petroleum Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, minister for commerce Khurram Dastgir and Sharifs special assistant on foreign affairs Tariq Fatemi.

Sharif will also hold talks with Erdogan on bilateral, regional and international issues and visit the Turkish Parliament.

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Turkish President Erdogan hosts family dinner for Pak PM Sharif - Hindustan Times

Relations between Athens and Ankara will remain in a critical phase at least until April 16, when Turks go to the polls to vote in a referendum on constitutional reforms, which, among other things, give the president significantly increased executive powers.

It is unfortunate that this period of political flux in Turkey coincides with a terrible economic crisis in Greece and a general flagging of public morale after seven years in the doldrums. But this is how things stand, and Athens should act accordingly.

For months we have heard Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan being lambasted for his politics and idiosyncrasies, or because of his highly unconventional attitude toward the values and rules of Europe and international justice. While such criticism may be worthy as an intellectual exercise, it serves no purpose whatsoever.

This writer is in no way suggesting we should try to be more understanding toward Erodgan. Turkeys provocative behavior, be it in the Aegean or elsewhere, needs always to be dealt with with determination and according to the rule of law.

This sends a message to the Turkish military officers carrying out the provocation.

Greece needs to use the demarche process and it must also keep NATO informed when Ankara pushes things too far in the Aegean. Greece has every right to defend itself and its interests, and this should be an indisputable fact.

However, when it comes to defense and security issues, confrontational rhetoric is seldom productive. More importantly, Greece simply doesnt need it.

Erdogan, in contrast, and particularly after the failed coup last summer, will use every means at his disposal to achieve the greatest possible support from the people of Turkey and help him achieve his ambitions.

In this context, the Turkish presidents rapprochement with the ultranationalist Gray Wolves party was not just unsurprising, but expected, especially after Erdogan toughened his stance vis-a-vis the Kurds. Provocations in the Aegean are just part and parcel of all this.

In this sense, we need to consider whether at the end of the day, the warning issued on Tuesday by Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias who said Athens will not be as tolerant if the incident of live ammunition being fired in the Aegean is repeated serves to prevent or stoke further escalation.

Greece has no reason to play Erdogans game of domestic politics. It needs only to stay firm and prudent.

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Athens doesn't need to play Erdogan's game - Kathimerini

President to meet Masoud Barzani in Istanbul

home > Turkey, middle east 23.02.2017 Ankara

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By Idris Okuducu

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is due to meet the leader of Iraqs Kurdish region in Istanbul on Sunday, a Foreign Ministry official said Thursday.

The meeting between Erdogan and Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdish Regional Government, was trailed by Erdogans spokesman Ibrahim Kalin on Wednesday.

We have a lot to talk about, he said. Iraq is important for us in all terms -- economically, in terms of border security and in humanitarian and cultural terms.

He went on to cite similar approaches to tackling Daesh and PKK terrorism as ways the two territories could work together.

The Foreign Ministry official was speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media.

Read more from the original source:
Turkey's Erdogan to meet Iraqi Kurdish leader - Anadolu Agency

Middle East Eye

Turkey asks German pupils to spy on Erdogan critics, says union Middle East Eye Turkish diplomats in Germany have been accused by a union of urging school pupils from the diaspora to film their teachers and report any critical comments they make about President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Germany's justice ministry has heard claims that ...

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Turkey asks German pupils to spy on Erdogan critics, says union - Middle East Eye

ANKARA Turkey on Wednesday called on the Israeli government to halt what it called "illegal settlement policies" on Palestinian land.

Ibrahim Kalin, the spokesman for President Tayyip Erdogan, made the comment at a news conference in Ankara. Erdogan has previously condemned Israel's decision to ramp up settlements in the West Bank as an "absolute provocation".

Israel announced plans last month for 3,000 more settlement homes in the occupied West Bank. It has also retroactively legalized about 4,000 settlement homes built on privately owned Palestinian land, a move that brought condemnation from the United Nations and the European Union.

(Reporting by Tulay Karadeniz and Daren Butler; Writing by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by David Dolan)

LONDON/CAIRO An Islamic State suicide bomber from Britain who blew himself up in an attack on Iraqi forces this week had been given compensation for his detention in the Guantanamo Bay military prison, Western security sources said on Wednesday.

DUBAI The United States should expect a "strong slap in the face" if it underestimates Iran's defensive capabilities, a commander of the elite Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday, as Tehran concluded war games.

BEIRUT The Syrian army and its allies took a small district on the outskirts of Aleppo from rebels on Wednesday, a war monitor and a military media unit run by Damascus ally Hezbollah said.

Continued here:
Spokesman for Turkey's Erdogan calls on Israel to halt 'illegal settlements' - Reuters