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NATO declared on Tuesday that Ukraine would be invited to join the alliance, but did not say how or when, disappointing its president but reflecting the resolve by President Biden and other leaders not to be drawn directly into Ukraine’s war with Russia. The wording means that Mr. Biden, who declared last week that “Ukraine isn’t ready for NATO membership,” and like-minded allies had prevailed over Poland and Baltic nations that wanted a formal invitation for Ukraine to join the alliance as soon as the war ends. NATO leaders released the document, a compromise product after weeks of argument, at a summit meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania. Hours earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, apparently aware of what it would say, issued a blast at the NATO leadership. “It’s unprecedented and absurd when a time frame is not set, neither for the invitation nor for Ukraine’s membership,” he wrote on Twitter before landing in Vilnius.

Persons: Biden, Volodymyr Zelensky, “, ” Organizations: NATO, Russia, Twitter Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Poland, Baltic, Vilnius, Lithuania

☆ 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

☆ Analysis: Why Ukraine's plea for NATO membership is such a profound dilemma for the West
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

The president said that the alliance needed to lay out a “rational path” for Ukraine’s membership but that it was still short of some requirements for joining, including over democratization. NATO membership would also boost Ukraine’s bid to cement a democracy that was vulnerable before the war and fulfill the desire of many of its people to join the West. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, and Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, last week introduced a resolution calling for a roadmap to Ukraine’s NATO membership as soon as it is practicable. “Guaranteeing Ukraine’s security would erode US security by increasingly the risk, obviously, of war with Russia,” he said. Even if Biden were to amend his position on accelerating NATO membership for Ukraine, he cannot ensure a successor would honor treaty obligations.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, ” Biden, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, Volodymyr Zelensky, Vladimir Putin, ”, –, Putin, stiffen, Lindsey Graham, Richard Blumenthal, “, We’re, Michael McCaul, Ben Friedman, ” Friedman, Donald Trump, Zelensky Organizations: CNN, NATO, Ukrainian, ABC News, Kremlin, Warsaw, South Carolina Republican, Connecticut Democrat, Ukraine, GOP Rep, House Foreign Affairs Committee, Texas Republican, Defense, American, Soviet, Russia Locations: Europe, Ukraine, Moscow, Russia, Lithuania, Eastern Europe, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Baltic, Latvia, Estonia, Soviet Union, Bucharest, Sens, Connecticut, Russian, United Kingdom, “ State, Western Europe, Israel, Taiwan, United States, Eastern

☆ NATO: Comments from Biden and Erdogan threaten to overshadow summit -- and help Putin
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

On Monday morning, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters that Sweden’s membership of NATO should be linked to Turkey’s membership of the European Union. And the Turkish president, officials are aware, is very good at using any leverage he has to extract things he wants from his Western allies. Erdogan, European officials have repeatedly said, knew that he had Brussels over a barrel as he could effectively “flood” Europe with refugees at will. It is therefore a headache, but not a huge shock, that Erdogan is using a key international summit to play his best hand. NATO, remarkably, has remained united for most of the war and has gone beyond what most expected was possible.

Persons: Jens Stoltenberg, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, ” Erdogan, Erdogan, Zelensky, Ozan, Putin, Christine Olsson, Joe Biden’s, “, ”, –, Biden – Organizations: CNN, NATO, European Union, West, Kurdistan Workers ’ Party, Kremlin, Kurdistan Workers ' Party, TT, Agency, AFP, Getty Locations: Lithuanian, Vilnius, Sweden, Finland, Russia, Ukraine, Turkey, Brussels, Ankara, Turkish, Syria, geopolitically, Europe, Kremlin

☆ NATO Tries to Remember What It Means to Fight a European War
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Steven Erlanger | More About Steven Erlanger | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Late last month, a German convoy of 1,000 troops with tanks, drones and armored vehicles made its way some 750 miles to a Lithuanian military compound in Pabrade in three days, using trains, ferries, trucks and planes — all NATO practice for a possible incursion by foreign (read: Russian) troops. The huge military exercise, integrating German and Lithuanian troops, began with reconnaissance and turned into a noisy, dusty battle that, not surprisingly, NATO won. The NATO exercise was meant to convince Lithuania and other countries bordering Russia that the promise of rapid reinforcement and collective defense was a reality. It was also intended to demonstrate the alliance’s new commitment to countering a more dangerous Russia, which argues that its war in Ukraine is a necessary response to what it considers NATO’s effort to dismantle Moscow’s sphere of influence. As NATO leaders prepare to gather in nearby Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, on Tuesday, the Baltic nations and the others on Europe’s eastern flank are feeling especially vulnerable.

Organizations: NATO, Leopard Locations: Lithuanian, Pabrade, Lithuania, Russia, Ukraine, Vilnius, Baltic

☆ Biden Says Ukraine Is Not Ready for NATO Membership
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Katie Rogers | More About Katie Rogers | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

President Biden said in an interview that aired on Sunday that Ukraine was not ready for membership in NATO and that it was “premature” to begin the process to allow Ukraine to join the alliance in the middle of a war. In an interview with CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, Mr. Biden said that he did not “think there is unanimity in NATO about whether or not to bring Ukraine into the NATO family now,” and that the process could take place only after a peace agreement with Russia was in place. “If the war is going on, then we’re all in war,” Mr. Biden said, referring to the alliance’s commitment to mutual defense. “We’re at war with Russia, if that were the case.” He added that there would be “other qualifications that need to be met, including democratization,” for Ukraine to be considered for membership. The president began a trip to Europe on Sunday that will include attending a NATO summit in Lithuania, where Russia’s war in Ukraine — and a decision last week by the United States to supply Kyiv with weapons that are banned by most of its allies — will be a main focus.

Persons: Biden, ”, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria, Mr, “ We’re Organizations: NATO Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Europe, Lithuania, United States

☆ What Biden needs to accomplish with his NATO trip
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( Betsy Klein | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

London CNN —President Joe Biden embarks on a weeklong trip to Europe on Sunday, and the stakes couldn’t be higher for the future of the NATO alliance. Biden makes a stop in London ahead of his attendance at the NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, followed by meetings with Nordic leaders in Helsinki, Finland. But Biden will be a key player in determining what specific, measurable criteria or timelines, if any, are offered to Ukraine for NATO membership during this summit. Sweden’s NATO membership is “within reach,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in a news briefing following a meeting of senior officials from Turkey, Sweden and Finland Thursday. And I’m really looking – anxiously looking forward for your membership,” Biden told Kristersson during a meeting in the Oval Office.

Persons: Joe Biden, Biden, month’s, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin’s, Vladimir Putin’s, ”, Chris Skaluba, Michael McCaul, Jake Sullivan, “, Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Zelensky, Zelensky, Sweden’s, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Jens Stoltenberg, Stoltenberg, Ulf Kristersson, ” Biden, Kristersson, –, it’s, Max Bergmann, Bergmann, China’s “, Sullivan, King Charles III, Jill Biden, Finnegan Biden, Rishi Sunak Organizations: London CNN, NATO, Nordic, Transatlantic Security Initiative, Strategy, Security, Foreign, US House Foreign, CNN, Wall Street, Turkish, White, Eurasia Program, Stuart Center, Center for Strategic, International Studies Locations: Europe, London, Vilnius, Lithuania, Helsinki, Finland, Ukraine, Russia, Belarusian, Bucharest, Romania, Eastern Europe, Sweden, Turkey, NATO’s, Madrid, Vilnius “, United Kingdom, Windsor, Norway, Iceland, Denmark, China

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

BRUSSELS, July 4 (Reuters) - NATO decided on Tuesday to extend Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s contract by a further year, opting to stick with an experienced leader as war rages on the alliance’s doorstep rather than try to agree on a successor. In a tweet, Stoltenberg said he was honoured by the decision to extend his term to October 1, 2024. "NATO member states have decided logically enough that the best secretary general currently on the market place is the one they already have. Others pressed the case for a first secretary general from eastern Europe. So NATO - and above all its predominant power, the United States - turned back to Stoltenberg.

Persons: Jens Stoltenberg’s, Stoltenberg, Jamie Shea, Donald Trump, Ben Wallace, Mette Frederiksen, Shea, Andrew Gray, Marine Strauss, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Peter Graff Organizations: NATO, Diplomats, House, British, Danish, European Union, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, Norway, Ukraine, Russian, Europe, North America, Kyiv, Afghanistan, Balkans, Asia, United States, China, France, Vilnius, Lithuania

☆ Sweden Quran burning protest approved outside mosque
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Lindsay Isaac | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

CNN —Swedish authorities approved a Quran-burning demonstration outside of a mosque in the center of Stockholm on Wednesday. The burning will coincide with the Muslim holiday of Eid-al-Adha, one of the most significant in the Islamic calendar. The decision to allow such an inflammatory protest may threaten Sweden’s chances of joining NATO, due to objections from Turkey. Earlier this year, Turkish-Swedish relations suffered a major blow following a rally outside Stockholm’s Turkish Embassy during which an anti-immigration politician set a copy of the Quran alight. The incident sparked anger in the Turkish capital, Ankara, where protesters took to the streets and burned the Swedish flag outside the Swedish embassy in response.

Persons: – Organizations: CNN, NATO, Stockholm’s, Anadolu Locations: Stockholm, Turkey, Sweden, Lithuanian, Vilnius, East, Europe, Turkish, Swedish, Stockholm’s Turkish, Ankara

☆ Analysis: From 'brain death' to innovator, the Ukraine war has transformed NATO
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Even before the invasion, NATO officials noted a rise in non-conventional warfare aimed at Ukraine and other Western targets. “Russia claims that NATO promised never to expand to the east after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (left) and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky meet in Kyiv, Ukraine, on April 20, 2023. Without engaging Russia, NATO has enabled Ukraine to try some of the things NATO would like to do but politically cannot do. But the alliance’s unity has been one of the least expected and most welcome aspects of the West’s response to the war in Ukraine.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Emmanuel Macron, ”, hasn’t, ” David van Weel, ” van Weel, Anatolii Stepanov, van Weel, Keir Giles, ” Giles, Peter Caddick, Adams, Jens Stoltenberg, Volodymyr Zelensky, DIANA, Emmanuel Dunand, Giles, “, ” Caddick, Macron Organizations: CNN, NATO, Kremlin, Emerging, Mechanized Brigade, Getty, NATO’s Brussels, Chatham, Presidential Press Service, Reuters, NATO Innovation Fund, Limited Partners, GPS, France's, White House Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Soviet Union, Bakhmut, Donetsk, AFP, London, China, Kyiv, Sweden, Paris, Macron, Europe

CNN —It appears increasingly likely that the 31 NATO members will be unable to coalesce around a candidate to be the alliance’s next secretary general and Jens Stoltenberg will be asked to remain in the job for an additional year, multiple sources told CNN. Biden and Stoltenberg met in the Oval Office last week, where the topic of his succession was expected to arise. White House officials have declined to say whether the president asked Stoltenberg to remain in job. “The current Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has been, in President Biden’s eyes, a remarkable leader,” Blinken said. “There are also some rather extraordinary people now who people were talking about as the next secretary general.

Persons: Jens Stoltenberg, Mette Frederiksen, Ben Wallace, Joe Biden, Stoltenberg, “, ”, Antony Blinken, Biden, I’ve, Blinken, ” “, General Jens Stoltenberg, Biden’s, ” Blinken Organizations: CNN, NATO, Danish, British, United Locations: Ukraine, United States, Norwegian, London

☆ NATO 'Air Defender 2023': Hundreds of warplanes fly over Germany in alliance's largest-ever aerial drills
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Brad Lendon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

An F-16 fighter airplane takes off from the Schleswig-Jagel Air Base in Jagel, Germany, on June 12 during the Air Defender 2023 exercise. “Air Defender is necessary because we live in a more dangerous world. Two US Air Force A10 fighter jets taxi onto the runway ahead of Air Defender 2023. Peter Layton, a fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute and former Royal Australian Air Force officer, said Air Defender 2023 should give Russian military planners a lot to think about. Similar planes are taking part in Air Defender 2023.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Oleksandr Vilkul, Andriy Dubchak, Gregor Fischer, Oana Lungescu, “, Putin, Amy Gutmann, Ingo Gerhartz, CNN’s Nic Robertson, Formidable ‘ hodge, Karl, Josef Hildenbrand, ”, Brynn Tannehill, it’s, Adam Casey, Tannehill, Peter Layton, Harald Tittel, ” Layton, ” Tannehill Organizations: CNN, NATO, Air, Russian, Russia, Operational Command, Alliance, Atlantic Treaty Organization, Jagel, Base, AP NATO, “, ” United, Russia –, Latvia –, German Tornadoes, US Air Force, RAND Corp, US Navy, Aviators, Griffith Asia Institute, Royal Australian Air Force, US, Air National Guard, National Guard, Air Force Locations: Germany, German, Moscow, Ukrainian, Kryvyi, Black, Odesa, Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, Russia, Soviet Union, Schleswig, Jagel, ” United States, Russia – Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Japan, US, Finnish, Spangdahlem, NATO

☆ Question of who will take over NATO looms as Biden meets alliance’s chief
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Kevin Liptak | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Washington CNN —As President Joe Biden prepares to sit down Monday with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, a personnel issue will be looming: Who will replace the outgoing NATO leader when he departs his post later this year? He’s already received a pitch on United Kingdom Defense Minister Ben Wallace from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak during an Oval Office meeting last week. A person familiar with the matter said Sunak entered the meeting prepared to sell Biden on Wallace, though afterward Biden told reporters he wasn’t yet convinced. Other candidates for NATO secretary general could include Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, according to diplomats. Finland’s membership was finalized in April, but Turkey has remained resistant to Sweden joining the defense alliance.

Persons: Joe Biden, Jens Stoltenberg, Biden, Stoltenberg, – NATO’s, He’s, Ben Wallace, Rishi Sunak, Sunak, Wallace, “ We’re, ”, “, haven’t, Mette Frederiksen, Frederiksen, Mark Rutte, Kaja Kallas, doesn’t, It’s Organizations: Washington CNN, NATO, United Kingdom Defense, British, Danish, Dutch, Estonian Locations: Lithuania, Ukraine, Finland, Sweden, Turkey

☆ Tiananmen Square masacre anniversary: vigils go global as authorities in China and Hong Kong stamp out remembrance
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-03 | by ( Chris Lau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

“I think it’s sad to say that what Beijing and Hong Kong are doing is trying to erase history and the memory,” said Kevin Yam, a former lawyer in Hong Kong, who will be attending a ceremony in Melbourne, Australia, where he now resides. “Hong Kong has been carrying the torch for commemorating the Tiananmen massacre, keeping the legacy alive. When the museum was shut down, with the Hong Kong alliance’s leaders in prison, we knew it was a critical moment,” he said. Thousands gathered at a candlelit vigil in Hong Kong on June 4, 2017, to mark 28 years since China's bloody Tiananmen Square crackdown. “It is true that the commemorations around June 4th have expanded and become more global since it has become impossible to do anything in Hong Kong,” he told CNN.

Persons: Tyrone Siu, Hong Kongers, ”, Kevin Yam, Zhou, Zhou Fengsuo, Wang Dan, Hong Kong’s, “, Hong Kong, Isaac Lawrence, Chris Tang –, –, Louise Delmotte, Richard Tsoi, Catherine Henriette, Jens Galschiot, Anthony Kwan, Kongers Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Communist Party, Reuters, CNN, Hong, People’s Liberation Army, Authorities, Getty, Victoria Park, Chinese Communist Party, Hong Kong Alliance, Police, . Police, of, Los, “, Britain –, London Locations: Hong Kong, China, Victoria, Beijing, Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Europe, United States, Canada, Melbourne, New York, York, “ Hong Kong, Hong, AFP, Tiananmen, Berlin, Danish, Germany, Los Angeles, Boston, Norway, Causeway, Britain, Nottingham, Manchester, London

☆ NATO Turkey: Alliance is in a race against time to save itself from a major embarrassment
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —NATO officials are in a race against time to avoid the embarrassment of seeing the alliance miss its own stated aim of admitting Sweden to the alliance by July 11. Sweden has a permanent delegation at NATO and is considered a close partner to the alliance, meaning joining should be relatively straightforward. The second is that Turkey isn’t the only fly in the ointment: Hungary also objects to Sweden joining NATO. Sweden joining NATO would be the latest in a long list of good news stories for the alliance since Russia invaded Ukraine. That’s precisely why officials are so concerned about Turkey vetoing Sweden’s accession on NATO’s own timetable.

Persons: it’s, Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s, Christine Olsson, Erdogan, Putin’s, Putin, ”, “ Erdogan, Yves Herman, –, Emmanuel Macron, Turkey vetoing Organizations: CNN, NATO, Russia, Kurdistan Workers ’ Party, Turkish, Reuters, TT, Agency, AFP, Sweden –, European Union, Diplomats, US, EU Locations: Sweden, Finland, Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, East, Europe, Ankara, Turkish, Stockholm, Lithuanian, Vilnius –, Atlantic, North Korea, China, ”, Eastern European, Brussels, Hungary, United States, United Kingdom, Asia

☆ Ukraine’s Future Ties to NATO Are Main Topic as Western Nations Meet
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Michael Crowley | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

Debates over whether and how to guarantee the long-term security of Ukraine and possibly admit it to the NATO alliance took center stage on Thursday in two gatherings of dozens of leaders from Europe and North America. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and his NATO counterparts took on the status of Ukraine at a meeting in Oslo, as well as Sweden’s application to join the 31-member alliance, following months of obstruction by alliance member Turkey. They discussed whether the standoff over Sweden could be resolved before a summit of NATO leaders in Vilnius, Lithuania, scheduled for July 11 and 12. At the same time, European leaders from countries both inside and outside the alliance met in Moldova, including President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who said there that “Ukraine is ready to join NATO” and was awaiting the alliance’s approval.

Persons: Antony J, Blinken, Volodymyr Zelensky Organizations: NATO, NATO ” Locations: Ukraine, Europe, North America, Oslo, Turkey, Sweden, Vilnius, Lithuania, Moldova

☆ Justice Department wins lawsuit to end JetBlue and American Airlines alliance
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —American Airlines and JetBlue Airways have to break up their alliance on Northeast US flight routes, a US District Court judge ordered Friday. US District Judge Leo Sorokin ruled in favor of the the Justice Department, giving the Biden administration a victory in its years-long lawsuit against the airlines’ collaboration. The airlines have 30 days to end their partnership, Sorokin ruled – just as the busy summer travel season kicks off. The Justice Department also alleged the two airlines shared revenues earned at these airports, eliminating their incentives to compete with one another. CNN has reached out to American Airlines, JetBlue and the Justice Department for comment.

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.

☆ A change in Turkish leadership might not spell the end of ties with Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Nadeen Ebrahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The strengthening ties between Erdogan and Putin have caused jitters in the West, with some watching the upcoming elections with anticipation of a possible Erdogan exit. That makes Russia among Turkey’s biggest trade partners. The European Union, as a bloc, however remains Turkey’s largest trade partner, with bilateral trade reaching around $219 billion, according to the European Commission. But while relations with the EU might improve if the opposition wins, the road may be longer and more challenging with the US, experts say. “When we mention Turkey’s relationship with the West… we sometimes take both ends of the Atlantic (as one),” Isci said.

☆ Bank Stocks Bounce as Investors Rethink Economic Outlook
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Joe Rennison | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

A group of regional bank stocks that came under severe pressure on Thursday, stoking fears of a spiraling banking crisis, surged on Friday, at least partially alleviating those worries. The rebound came as the market was also bolstered by data on hiring deemed strong enough to soften concerns about a recession without prompting the Federal Reserve to tighten the screws on the economy further. PacWest soared nearly 80 percent, after falling over 50 percent on Thursday. Western Alliance’s share price rose more than 30 percent, also recouping a chunk of its drop the day before. The relief rally helped to lift the broader market, with the S&P 500 up 1.5 percent heading into the afternoon.

“We need to have tabletop exercises that go through a variety of scenarios, including possibly nuclear weapons,” a senior official told CNN earlier this month. Leaks loomRecent online leaks of Pentagon documents involving South Korea also loom over the visit. One of the leaked documents describes, in remarkable detail, a conversation between two senior South Korean national security officials about concerns by the country’s National Security Council over a US request for ammunition. Plans and pompWednesday’s events mark just the second state visit of the Biden presidency (Biden hosted French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte in December 2022). President Joe Biden, first lady Jill Biden, South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon Hee visit the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, Tuesday.

☆ NATO chief visits Kyiv: Jens Stoltenberg says Ukraine's "rightful place" is in the alliance
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Sana Noor Haq Luke Mcgee Alex Hardie Zahid Mahmood Victoria Butenko | Sana Noor Haq | Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday “Ukraine’s future is in NATO,” in his strongest remarks reaffirming ties with Kyiv since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg visits the Wall of Remembrance to pay tribute to fallen Ukrainian soldiers in Kyiv on April 20, 2023. Gleb Garanich/ReutersStoltenberg (left) and President Volodymyr Zelensky (right) meet during the alliance chief's historic trip to Ukraine on Thursday. Finnish public support for accession snowballed following the invasion of Ukraine, and also reignited calls from Kyiv to join. Speaking at a joint conference in Kyiv, Zelensky said he valued the support from the alliance but pressed Stoltenberg on when Ukraine would be invited to join NATO.

☆ Russian spy ships suspected of gathering intelligence in Nordic waters, investigation finds
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Li-Lian Ahlskog Hou Allegra Goodwin Anna Chernova Vasco Cotovio | Li-Lian Ahlskog Hou | Allegra Goodwin | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —Russia has a fleet of suspected spy ships operating in Nordic waters as part of a program for the potential sabotage of underwater cables and wind farms in the region, according to a joint investigation by the public broadcasters of Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. The investigation also said Russian ships appear suddenly following NATO exercises. One ship at the center of the investigation, the Admiral Vladimirsky, is officially used for underwater research expeditions, but is, according to the report, a Russian spy ship. A masked man emerged on the deck of the Admiral Vladimirsky, the ship at the center of an investigation that found a Russian fleet of suspected spy ships in Nordic waters. The investigation comes after Dutch intelligence officials warned Russia had tried to gain intelligence to prepare for the potential sabotage of critical infrastructure in their patch of the North sea.

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