Turkey

15 Mar 2020; MEMO: Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias’ remarks on social media are “concrete evidence of the inconsistent, double-standard, illegal and inhumane policies” pursued by this country, said Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman on Sunday, referring to the asylum seekers along the Turkey-Greece border, Anadolu Agency reports.

ANKARA, March 13 (NNN-ANADOLU) — ATurkey will close its primary, secondary and high schools for two weeks, with remote education to begin in the second week as part of precautions against the novel coronavirus, the country’s education minister said Thursday.

The announcement came after a five-hour meeting at the presidential complex amid the global coronavirus outbreak. Following the meeting, Presidential Spokesman Ibrahim Kalin declared various precautionary measures for the coming weeks, including school closures.

ISTANBUL, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Illegal migrants have been trying to cross the Aegean Sea in an attempt to reach Greek islands from Turkey, despite warnings about danger.

During the last three days, the Turkish coast guard teams apprehended 177 migrants either stranded in a risky situation on the sea or pushed back to Turkish waters by Greek coast guard teams, the force said on its website Wednesday.

12 Mar 2020; MEMO: Turkey’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday summoned Greek Ambassador to Ankara Michael-Christos Diamessis over his country’s violations of Turkish territorial waters and detention of journalists, Anadolu reports.

The Foreign Ministry called on Greece to end violations of the Turkish waters.

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish and Russian officials have largely reached an agreement on details of a ceasefire in Syria’s Idlib region during talks in Ankara, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar was quoted as saying by state media on Thursday.

Last week, Turkey and Russia agreed on the ceasefire meant to halt an escalation of violence in Idlib. A Russian delegation arrived in Ankara this week to discuss the details including a security corridor and joint patrols on the key M4 highway.

11 Mar 2020; MEMO: A Turkish citizen with high fever and cough symptoms was diagnosed with the coronavirus following tests, making him the country’s first confirmed diagnosis, Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said early on Wednesday.

The male patient is in good health condition and his family and people who had close contact with him are under observation.

ANKARA, Mar 10 (NNN-ANADOLU) – Turkish and Russian military delegations, will hold talks in Turkey’s capital Ankara, on Tuesday, to discuss the functioning of a security corridor around key M4 highway, in Idlib province of northwestern Syria.

The meeting will be held with the Russian Military Committee, within the framework of the agreement reached in Moscow on Mar 5, 2020, Turkey’s Defence Ministry said in a statement.

Turkey and Russia agreed on a new cease-fire for Idlib, after tensions escalated between Turkish army and the Syrian government and its allies.

ISTANBUL, Mar 9 (NNN-ANADOLU) – Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on Sunday, urged Greece to open its border gate for the passage of refugees, who have been waiting in Turkey’s northwestern border for the last 10 days to enter Europe.

“These people will not stay in Greece. They will transit to another European country from there,” Erdogan said, at a meeting in Istanbul, marking International Women’s Day.

He slammed the intervention of Greek security forces against the refugees, at the Pazarkule border crossing.

ANKARA, March 9. /TASS/: The talks involving Russia’s military delegation on the situation in the Idlib de-escalation zone will start in Ankara on March 10, the Turkish Ministry of National Defense said in a statement on Monday.

"In accordance with the Moscow memorandum (on Idlib), the talks involving Russia’s military delegation will start on March 10 in Ankara," the statement said.

The sides are expected to discuss the details on joint patrolling along the M-4 road in Syria, which is scheduled to start on March 15.

ANKARA, March 8. /TASS/: Ankara could take unilateral action in the Syrian region of Idlib unless the agreements with Russia are implemented, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in Istanbul on Sunday.

"We retain the right to clear that site in our own way in case the promise given to us about the location of Operation Spring Shield [in Idlib] is not kept. We reached an agreement [with Russia] to resolve the Idlib crisis without any further bloodshed. If not, we will be going on along the path we have set for ourselves," Erdogan said aired by NTV channel.