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☆ Welcome to ‘the Tepid Twenties’? The US economy’s strength won’t be enough to boost global growth
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Invigorating growth is critical: When the economy expands, it improves standards of living, promotes innovation and makes households wealthier. Economic growth in Spain and France was stronger than expected last year. But the US is outperforming mainly for one key reason: Robust productivity growth. Productivity growth came in well below expectations in the first three months of the year, according to Labor Department data released last week. A “course correction” isn’t an even stronger US economy: Economic policymakers around the world need to address a range of key issues.

Persons: ” Kristalina Georgieva, ” Georgieva, ” Stephen Gallagher, Gallagher, “, ”, Hande Atay Alam, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Israel Katz, John Williams, Neel Kashkari, Lisa Cook, Krispy Kreme, John’s, Austan Goolsbee Organizations: Washington CNN, Monetary, IMF, European Central Bank, Labor Department, Societe Generale, CNN, Reuters, Palantir Technologies, Tyson Foods, Marriott Worldwide, New York Fed, Disney, UBS, Duke Energy, Suncor, Bros, Minneapolis, Toyota, Uber, Anheuser, Busch InBev, Airbnb, Fox Corporation, News Corporation, Duolingo, Icahn Enterprises, New York Times Company, AMC Entertainment, Honda, Warner Bros Discovery, Warner Music Group, Hyatt, Hilton, Bank of England, US Labor Department, United Kingdom’s, National Statistics, University of Michigan, . Chicago Fed, China’s National Bureau of Statistics Locations: Europe, China, United States, Spain, France, Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, Israel, Gaza, Olesya, “ Turkey, Lyft, TripAdvisor

☆ Turkey halts trade with Israel over Gaza war
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-03 | by ( Hande Atay Alam | Olesya Dmitracova | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Turkey has halted all import and export transactions with Israel in protest over the war in Gaza. “All import and export transactions related to Israel, including all products, have been stopped,” Turkey’s trade ministry said in a statement Thursday. Thursday’s measures by Turkey follow the introduction last month of restrictions on its exports to Israel after the Turkish foreign minister accused Israel of denying a request to airdrop aid to Gaza. Turkey is one of the biggest donors of aid to Gaza, according to Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories. Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed more than 34,600 Palestinians as of May 1, according to the territory’s Ministry of Health.

Persons: “, ”, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Israel Katz, Katz, Israel, Turkey’s, Eyad Organizations: CNN, Reuters, Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hamas, territory’s Ministry of Health Locations: Turkey, Israel, Gaza, “ Turkey, “ Israel, Territories, Republic of Turkey, Gaziantep

☆ Opinion | Trump Is Flirting With Quack Economics
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Paul Krugman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

I wish people would stop calling Donald Trump a populist. He has, after all, never demonstrated any inclination to help working Americans, and his economic policies really didn’t help — his 2017 tax cut, in particular, was a giveaway to the wealthy. But his behavior during the Covid-19 pandemic showed that he’s as addicted to magical thinking and denial of reality as any petty strongman or dictator, which makes it all too likely that he might preside over the type of problems that result when policies are based on quack economics. Now, destructive economic policy isn’t the thing that alarms me the most about Trump’s potential return to power. Prospects for retaliation against his political opponents, huge detention camps for undocumented immigrants and more loom much larger in my mind.

Persons: Rudiger Dornbusch, Sebastian Edwards, wasn’t, “, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of, Donald Trump, he’s, Biden Locations: Latin America, Argentina, Venezuela, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, United States

☆ Winning City Halls, Turkish Opposition Strikes Blow to Erdogan
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Ben Hubbard | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Last May, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey handily secured another term as head of state, shattering the morale of the political opposition and raising fears among his critics that his hold on the government would enable him to further edge Turkey toward autocracy. This weekend, the opposition struck back. Mr. Erdogan’s opponents secured a surprising string of victories in local elections across Turkey on Sunday, increasing the share of the country’s cities under their control and further ensconcing them in most of the major metropolises. Those opposition victories could serve as a check on Mr. Erdogan’s power at home, analysts said, while enabling rising opposition stars to wield the large budgets of major cities to build their profiles before the next presidential election, expected in 2028. The results were a blow to Mr. Erdogan, 70, who has been Turkey’s predominant politician for more than two decades.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan’s, Erdogan Organizations: NATO Locations: Turkey, United States

☆ The pope raises eyebrows after saying Ukraine should have the 'courage of the white flag' and negotiate with Russia
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-10 | by ( Cameron Manley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Pope Francis said Ukraine should have the 'courage of the white flag' and negotiate with Russia. AdvertisementPope Francis has sparked controversy after saying Ukraine should have the "courage of the white flag" and negotiate an end to the war with Russia. "You are the heirs of the great Russia. The great Russia of the saints, of the kings, of the great Russia of Peter the Great, of Catherine II, that great imperial Russia, cultivated, with so much culture and humanity," he said. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in Istanbul March 8, 2024 Ozan Guzelce/dia images via Getty ImagesBut Russia and Ukraine continue to speak at cross purposes.

Persons: Pope Francis, —, Edgers Rinkēvičs, Matteo Bruni, Bruni, Zelenskyy, Darya, Alexander Dugin, Dugina, Dmytro Kuleba, Francis, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Peter the Great, Catherine II, Oleh, " Bruni, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Ozan Organizations: Service, RSI, Catholic Church, Ukrainian Foreign, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Kremlin, Kyiv Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Swiss, Turkey, Visegrad, Latvian, Russian, Moscow, Ukrainian, Istanbul, Turkish, Crimea

☆ Turkey’s Central Bank Chief Steps Down Amid Long Inflation Battle
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Ben Hubbard | More About Ben Hubbard | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey appointed a new central bank governor early Saturday, hours after the abrupt resignation of his previous appointee, who said she was stepping down because of “a major reputation assassination campaign.”The departing central bank chief, Hafize Gaye Erkan, was the fifth in five years, and the first woman to hold the post. The bank’s deputy governor, Fatih Karahan, was swiftly promoted to take her place. The surprise change-up came about eight months into a shift in Turkey’s economic program aimed at taming a yearslong cost-of-living crisis that has been painful for many Turks. Annual inflation as of last month was about 65 percent. In an apparent effort to reassure investors, senior officials said that Ms. Erkan’s departure did not signal a change in policy.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, ”, Hafize Gaye Erkan, Fatih Karahan, Erkan’s Locations: Turkey

☆ Biden Urges Congress to Quickly Approve F-16 Sale to Turkey
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Edward Wong | More About Edward Wong | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

President Biden sent a letter to four senior members of Congress on Wednesday urging them to quickly approve a $20 billion sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, following the vote one day earlier by Turkey’s Parliament to allow Sweden to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, according to three U.S. officials. The White House sent the letter to the top Democratic and Republican lawmakers on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, which have oversight of arms transfers by the State Department to other nations. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, a member of NATO, has linked his country’s approval of Sweden’s accession to the security organization to the F-16 sales, which had been pending. Both Sweden and Finland had asked to join NATO after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and the vast majority of the alliance’s members soon agreed. Turkey approved Finland’s bid but, along with Hungary, has withheld approval for Sweden.

Persons: Biden, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Organizations: Atlantic Treaty Organization, White House, Democratic, Republican, Senate Foreign Relations, House Foreign Affairs Committee, State Department, NATO Locations: Turkey, Sweden, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, Finland, Ukraine, Hungary

Speaking in Parliament to lawmakers from his Justice and Development Party, Mr. Erdogan accused Israel of deliberately attacking civilians in Gaza and killing large numbers of children, women and older people. Mr. Erdogan also criticized Western countries for their strong backing of Israel and for branding Hamas, the armed Palestinian group that controls Gaza, as a terrorist organization. But recently, Mr. Erdogan made steps at rapprochement with the Jewish state. On Wednesday, Mr. Erdogan said all plans to visit Israel had been scrapped. “We clearly mentioned that we never excuse any acts targeting civilians, including Israeli civilians, regardless of the perpetrator,” he said.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Israel, ”, Mr, mujahedeen, Erdogan’s, Isaac Herzog, Netanyahu, Benjamin Netanyahu, “, Ergodan’s, Lior, Russia’s, Vladimir V, Putin, ” Mr, Nadav Gavrielov Organizations: NATO, Development Party, Hamas, European Union, Ministry, Israel’s, Turkish, Turkish Presidency Press, Agence France, United Nations General Assembly, ISIS Locations: Turkey, Israel, United States, Gaza, Ankara, Israeli, New York, Turkish, Russia, Ukraine, “, Seoul

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey signed the protocol approving Sweden’s bid to join the NATO military alliance and sent it to the Turkish Parliament on Monday, according to a brief statement from his office. It was not immediately clear why Mr. Erdogan, who had refused to officially endorse Sweden’s NATO bid for many months, suddenly decided to back it now, nor when Parliament would vote on it. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, Sweden and Finland, which both have borders with Russia, applied to join NATO, a process that is subject to approval by all of the alliance’s members. Mr. Erdogan initially refused to back either of them, but later changed his stance on Finland, paving the way for it to join NATO in April. But he continued to hold out on Sweden, accusing it of not doing enough to crack down on Turkish separatists and other Turkish dissidents in Sweden that Turkey considers terrorists.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Mr Organizations: NATO Locations: Turkey, Turkish, Ukraine, Sweden, Finland, Russia

☆ Saudi Arabia and Turkey are emerging as the new peace brokers of the Russia-Ukraine war
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomes Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud in Ankara, Turkey, on June 22, 2022. "We thank the Crown Prince and Government of Saudi Arabia for facilitating [the prisoner exchange]," Sullivan wrote in a separate post. "Saudi Arabia and Turkey are good examples of such mid-level powers now helping shape international realities in a way they rarely did during the Cold War." And Turkey, like Saudi Arabia, refuses to partake in sanctions against Russia, irking its Western allies. Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (R) meets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (L) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on May 19, 2023.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, Mustafa Kaya, Russian –, Vladimir Putin, –, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Jake Sullivan, Putin, Sullivan, Hussein Ibish, Russia's Putin, Vilius Semeska, Selcuk Bayraktar, Haluk Bayraktar, Ibish, Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Erdogan, Mohammed bin Salman, Ryan Bohl, Rane, Ayham Kamel Organizations: Saudi Arabia's Crown, Getty, Crown, Russia, Handout, Anadolu Agency, Twitter, Ukraine –, Prince, Saudi, Gulf States Institute, CNBC, NATO, Defence, Baykar, Saudi Arabian Crown, Saudi Foreign Ministry, Getty Images, Ukrainian, Arab, Russo, East, Global, Eurasia Group Locations: Ankara, Turkey, Xinhua, Russian, Russia, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Kyiv, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Saudi, Jeddah, U.S, China, India, Brazil, Washington, Turkey's, Lithuanian, Istanbul, Turkish, , Washington, North Africa, Riyadh, Middle East

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey on Wednesday tempered the expectation that his expression of support this week for Sweden joining NATO meant that he would swiftly push the approval through the Turkish parliament. In his first public comments on the issue since NATO announced his support for the proposal on Monday, Mr. Erdogan said that the final decision rested with the parliament and that Sweden needed to take more steps to win parliamentary support, without giving specifics. He also said parliament would not take up the matter until October, even though it is in session until July 27. Mr. Erdogan also said that Sweden needed to continue working to address Turkey’s security concerns, suggesting that he was not yet ready to give up his leverage. “The parliament is not in session for the next two months,” Mr. Erdogan told reporters in Vilnius, Lithuania, near the end of the annual NATO summit.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan of, Erdogan, Erdogan’s, ” Mr Organizations: NATO Locations: Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, Sweden, Turkey, Vilnius, Lithuania

☆ Erdogan’s U-turn on Sweden could signal a warming of ties with the West.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( Ben Hubbard | More About Ben Hubbard | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

ISTANBUL — Over the past year, the leaders of many NATO countries have viewed President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey as an in-house spoiler. While they were trying to isolate President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia for his invasion of Ukraine, Mr. Erdogan referred to Mr. Putin as “my friend.” While other leaders worked to enlarge the alliance, Mr. Erdogan held up the process by seeking concessions for Turkey. Then on Monday, suddenly, Mr. Erdogan flipped, dropping his objections to Sweden joining NATO and allowing the alliance’s summit to convene on Tuesday with a new sense of strength and unity. Mr. Erdogan’s about-face is consistent with his political style: He often doubles down on policies he expects to strengthen him, and then unapologetically throws them out once their worth has diminished, analysts said.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Vladimir V, Putin, Russia, Erdogan, Mr, ”, Erdogan’s Organizations: NATO Locations: ISTANBUL, Turkey, Ukraine, Sweden

☆ Erdogan Says E.U. Must ‘Clear the Way’ for Turkey Before It Will Support Sweden’s NATO Bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Ben Hubbard | More About Ben Hubbard | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

ISTANBUL — President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey said on Monday that the European Union should open the way for Turkey to join the bloc before Turkey allows Sweden to join NATO, adding a surprising new condition that could further stall the military alliance’s efforts to expand. Mr. Erdogan’s latest demand came a day before the opening of NATO’s two-day annual summit, where leaders, including President Biden, had hoped to secure unanimous approval from member states to allow Sweden to become the 32nd member. That outcome now appears increasingly unlikely, with Mr. Erdogan posing the main obstacle to Sweden’s membership. “First, clear the way for Turkey in the European Union, then we will clear the way for Sweden as we did for Finland,” Mr. Erdogan told reporters before traveling to the NATO summit.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Biden, Erdogan, ” Mr Organizations: European Union, NATO Locations: ISTANBUL, Turkey, European, Sweden, Finland

For months, NATO leaders had hoped that when they convened for their annual summit next week, they could use the occasion to welcome Sweden as the alliance’s newest member. Now, that outcome appears all but impossible, as stalling by Hungary and continued objections by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey have drawn out the process, raising questions about when Sweden might be able to join and what sort of breakthrough would be necessary. All 31 member states must agree to admit new members, and the split over Sweden risks denting the alliance’s ability to project a united front against President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia as his forces seek to beat back a Ukrainian counteroffensive. NATO officials say the hope is to get all the alliance’s leaders to agree at the two-day summit set to begin on Tuesday in Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, to let Sweden join. Then, the thinking goes, Mr. Erdogan and Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary can push the approval through their respective parliaments.

Persons: Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Vladimir V, Putin, Russia, Erdogan, Viktor Orban Organizations: NATO Locations: Sweden, Hungary, Turkey, Ukrainian, Vilnius, Lithuanian

☆ Biden Backed NATO Expansion, but It Won’t Be Easy
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Matthew Cullen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

President Biden welcomed Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson of Sweden at the White House today to emphasize America’s support for the Nordic nation’s swift acceptance into NATO. Sweden’s entry into NATO would be a significant blow to President Vladimir Putin of Russia, who has sought to halt the alliance’s expansion. But as the alliance prepares for a show of unity at a summit in Lithuania next week, the only major barrier is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, a NATO ally. He has been able to block Sweden because acceptance requires unanimous consent. The U.S. has tried to placate the Turkish leader, including by supporting the sale of new F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, but Erdogan hasn’t budged.

Persons: Biden, Ulf Kristersson, Vladimir Putin of, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of, Erdogan hasn’t budged Organizations: NATO Locations: Sweden, Vladimir Putin of Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, NATO, Turkey, U.S, Stockholm

☆ Ukraine and Russia Renew a Deal to Allow Ukraine to Ship Grain
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Matthew Mpoke Bigg | Gulsin Harman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Ukraine and Russia agreed Wednesday to a two-month extension of a wartime deal that allows Ukraine to ship its grain across the Black Sea, a rare example of cooperation between the two countries. Under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which began last July, Ukraine, a major exporter of wheat, corn and sunflower oil, can transport grain and other food products along a corridor past Russian naval vessels that have blockaded Ukraine’s ports since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion 15 months ago. The shipments are subject to inspection off the coast of Istanbul, while empty cargo ships headed to Ukraine’s ports are also checked, in part to ensure they are not carrying weapons. Grain exports are important for Ukraine’s economy and their resumption also helps maintain the stability of global food prices, which rose sharply during the first months of war, as grain intended for export piled up in Ukrainian ports and warehouses. The resulting shortages and price increases raised the threat of famine in parts of the Middle East and Africa.

He represents a coalition of six opposition parties that have come together to challenge Mr. Erdogan. Recent polls showed Mr. Kilicdaroglu holding a slight lead, despite Mr. Erdogan’s tapping of state resources in an effort to tilt the contest. Mr. Erdogan, 69, is viewed as a problematic and often unpredictable partner of the West. Mr. Erdogan has also vexed fellow NATO leaders by hampering the alliance’s efforts to expand, stalling Finland’s membership and still refusing to endorse Sweden’s inclusion. Mr. Kilicdaroglu, 74, has vowed to improve relations with the West if he is elected and make policy more institutional and less personal.

☆ Turkey’s President Amassed Power. He Could Still Lose This Election.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Ben Hubbard | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

ISTANBUL, Turkey — As President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey approaches the toughest election of his career on Sunday, he has marshaled many of the resources of the state to tilt the playing field to his advantage. His challenger barely appears on the state broadcaster while Mr. Erdogan’s speeches are aired in full. And this weekend’s vote will be overseen by an election board that, during recent votes, has made questionable calls that benefited the president. And yet, Mr. Erdogan could still lose. But Mr. Erdogan’s grip on the country could also contribute to his undoing, if voters drop him because of his strongman ways and persistently high inflation that has left Turks feeling poorer.

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