APRNEWS - Turkey is not distancing itself from the NATO alliance by buying Russian S-400 missile defense systems, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on Friday, adding that Ankara should not be excluded from the F-35 jet project over the purchases.

APRNEWS - President Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday he was determined to lower interest rates to targeted levels and described recent comments on falling central bank forex reserves as aimed at creating negative sentiment towards Turkey.

REUTERS - Turkey will start a new military operation in Syria east of the Euphrates river “in a few days”, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday, a move that could further complicate relations with the United States.

APRNEWS - President Tayyip Erdogan’s communications director said on Monday it was unacceptable for French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian to accuse the Turkish president of playing political games in the case of the slain Saudi journalist.

REUTERS - A “National Army” being set up by Syrian rebels with Turkey’s help could become a long-term obstacle to President Bashar al-Assad’s recovery of the northwest - if they can end factional rivalries that have long blighted the opposition.

REUTERS - U.S. sanctions imposed on Turkey over the trial of an American pastor accused of backing terrorism are unacceptable and will have limited impact on the Turkish economy, Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak said on Thursday.

REUTERS - Turkey’s Tayyip Erdogan emerged victorious on Monday from his biggest electoral challenge in a decade and a half, giving him the sweeping, executive powers he has long sought and extending his grip on the nation of 81 million until at least 2023.

AFP - Turkish police on Monday detained four Iraqis suspected of planning an attack on the US embassy in Ankara, media reported.

The group were held during anti-terror raids in the Black Sea province of Samsun, Hurriyet daily said, after the US mission in the capital announced it would close Monday because of a "security threat".

AFP - The Turkish army on Monday said 31 soldiers had been killed since Ankara launched its offensive against a Kurdish militia in Syria last month.

AFP - Turkey on Thursday said it planned to host in Istanbul a new three-way summit on Syria with the presidents of Russia and Iran aimed at reviving a drive to bring peace to the country.