Turkey

ANKARA, July 30 (Xinhua) -- The pressure on Turkish economy over its purchase of the Russian S-400 defense system is "minimized," Turkish Finance and Treasury Minister Berat Albayrak said Tuesday.

Statements from the U.S. officials and talks between Ankara and Washington "display more positive process" with regards to possible U.S. sanctions on Turkey, Albayrak told reporters.

The possible impact of the S-400 crisis with the U.S. government on Turkish economy "is much lower," he noted.

ANKARA, Turkey, July 30 (NNN-ANADOLU) – Turkey will have to set up a safe zone in northern Syria on its own, if no agreement is reached with the United States, Turkish Defence Minister, Hulusi Akar, told his U.S. counterpart.

According to a statement, released by Turkey’s Defence Ministry, Akar discussed the issue of the Syrian safe zone, with U.S. new Defence Secretary, Mark Esper.

29 July 2019; AA: Turkish divers spotted an “aplysia depilans”, a rare species of a sea hare, off western Canakkale province.

Selim Konya, a diving center manager, along with several officials from Istanbul University, recorded spotted the rare sea hare at the depth of 26 meters in the Aegean Sea off Gokceada district.

Noting that it was the first time he saw such a specie, Konya said, “I saw it from a long distance. I was surprised and other divers were also surprised.”

ISTANBUL, July 28 (NNN-Bernama) — Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad says he plans to promote collaboration with Turkish companies in the production of a ‘super car” in order to further enhance the capability of the nation’s automotive industry. 

The prime minister said he had long been aware of Turkish companies’ capability but only now could he see it first-hand.

“I was aware of their capability. But there was no follow-up at the time as I was not the prime minister then, so making progress would have been difficult.

28 July 2019; AA: The third phase of the Turkey Drone Championship kicked off Saturday in Cappadocia, a charming touristic hub famed for its fairy chimneys in Turkey.

As part of the Teknofest, Turkey’s leading aerospace and technology festival, 32 licensed pilots are participating in the competition.

ANTALYA, July 26. /TASS/: Russia and Turkey have discussed deliveries of Russian SSJ 100 and MC-21 civil aircraft and joint production of helicopters, Russian Minister of Energy Alexander Novak said on Friday after a session of the Russia-Turkish intergovernmental commission.

"As for the industrial sector, we discussed deliveries of helicopters and the establishment of a joint venture for the production of helicopters. Future plans include joint production and supplies of SSJ 100 and MC-21 planes," he said in an interview with the Rossiya-24 TV channel.

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday his country is determined to destroy what he called a “terror corridor” in northern Syria — regardless of whether or not Turkey and the United States agree on the establishment of a so-called “safe zone” there.

ANTALYA, July 26. /TASS/: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said on Friday that he is hoping that the United States will display reason when considering whether to impose sanctions following Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 missile systems.

"We can begin actively using S-400 in April 2020 after their deployment and our specialists’ training are completed. I am hoping for the United States’ common sense," the NTV channel quoted him as saying.

ANTALYA, July 26. /TASS/: The trade turnover of Russia and Turkey should reach $100 bln in coming years, while it totaled $25.5 bln in 2018, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Friday at the intergovernmental commission meeting.

"The leaders of our countries set an ambitious task - to boost trade turnover to $100 bln," Novak said. The upside for mutual investments is in such spheres as space, pharmaceuticals and digital technologies, further to traditional industries as agriculture, construction, metals and energy.

25 July 2019; AA: The Central Bank of Turkey (CBRT) on Thursday lowered its one-week repo rate 425 basis points.

The bank's policy rate -- also known as one-week repo rate -- fell to 19.75%, a steep down from 24%.

"Recently released data indicate a moderate recovery in the economic activity," the CBRT said.

The decision came in a statement from the bank's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting -- the fifth of eight meetings scheduled for 2019.