Author: Hikmet Ozogus

Sri Lanka has told hundreds of thousands of Russians and some Ukrainians staying in the country to escape the war that they must leave in the next two weeks, immigration officers said. The immigration controller issued a notice to the tourism ministry asking Russian and Ukrainian people staying on extended tourist visas to leave Sri Lanka within two weeks from 23 February. Just over 288,000 Russians and nearly 20,000 Ukrainians have traveled to Sri Lanka in the last two years since the war began, according to official data. Commissioner-General of Immigration said the “government is not granting further visa extensions” as the “flight situation has…

Valencia, Turin, Madrid (28/11 – 25) Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia retained his MotoGP world title with many records; there are nevertheless signs that the Ducati rider will face sterner competition next season. The Italian rider won the 2023 season-ending MotoGP Grand Prix in Valencia on Sunday to clinch his second world title in a row. The protege of Valentino Rossi becomes the third rider to take back-to-back MotoGP titles since the introduction of the class in 2002. Only Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez previously managed to do that. Bagnaia is the first rider to successfully race and defend #1 in the…

Paris, Wellington, Cape Town (23/10 – 33) History is arising on the horizon, as New Zealand and South Africa, two ancient foes, clash in the 2023 Rugby World Cup Final on Saturday 28 October. New Zealand smartly swept Argentina aside, 44-6, in the first semifinal on 20 October. After their embarrassing defeat 13-27 at the hands of France in the first pool match, The All Blacks are now on a fantastic run. Will Jordan and Co. destroyed Namibia 71-3, Italy 96-17, and Uruguay 73-0 in the remaining pool matches to the knock-out phase. Ian Foster’s team overcame the world number…

Frankfurt, Brussels (21/7 – 37) Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once again reversed course, approving Sweden’s bid to join the legacy European military bloc, having been promised a brace of classic F-16 fighter jets. This new deal was hammered out at the recent NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, and included a vow by Türkiye to avoid quarrels with ancient enemy Greece also a NATO member. During a 12 July press conference on in Vilnius, Erdogan touched on several issues important for Türkiye, including ratifying Sweden’s NATO bid, its F-16 jet deal with the US, and a “balancing act” between…

Libya’s state-owned oil company, the National Oil Corporation (NOC), had established last month a new program office, but multiple foreign press reports claim that one of the staff running the office is embroiled in a major fraud case in Kazakhstan. Peter Sztyk, a Canadian lawyer and entrepreneur who also goes by the name “Petro”, has joined a group of foreign consultants who will manage the Office of Strategic Programs, which the NOC inaugurated in February 15 during a meeting with local oil industry executives in Benghazi. Who is Peter Sztyk? The Canadian lawyer graduated in 1993 from Concordia University with bachelor in…

Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Aleinik met with outgoing Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Tajikistan to Belarus Mahmadsharif Hakdod on 6 June, BelTA learned from the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The parties discussed the state and prospects of Belarus-Tajikistan relations. Special emphasis was placed on the development of industrial cooperation and increasing the volume of bilateral trade. The parties reaffirmed their readiness to further intensify the political dialogue and economic cooperation and to cooperate closely within the framework of international organizations, including such integration organizations as the CIS, CSTO and SCO. Sergei Aleinik thanked the ambassador for his…

The Turkish economy has grown in the past 10 quarters, as investments are continuing, the minister told state broadcaster TRT Haber in an interview. Exports, employment and growth remain strong, Nebati said, adding that production and exports continued despite the earthquakes. The economy performed well even in February despite the ongoing war and the earthquakes, Nebati said, noting that the unemployment rate was 10 percent. The powerful earthquakes hit several provinces in Türkiye’s south in early February, devastating businesses and killing over 50,000 people. In the wake of the earthquakes, the government immediately allocated 100 billion Turkish Liras, and some…

Turkish scientists carried out 18 different projects in the fields of earth science, life science, physical science and social sciences during the 7th National Antarctic Science Expedition in Antarctica, also known as the “continent of science and peace”, Anadolu News Agency reports. Under the auspices of the Turkish Presidency, coordinated by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkiye’s (TUBITAK) Polar Research Institute and under the responsibility of the Turkish Industry and Technology Ministry, the 7th National Antarctic Science Expedition became a rich lab for scientific research for Turkish scientists at the South Pole. In their research on the white…

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday called on the European Union to “seriously consider” providing financial aid to help extend an anti-migrant steel fence along the border with Turkey. “I think it’s about time for the EU to seriously consider providing European funds for these types of projects,” the head of government told AFP, on the sidelines of a visit announcing the project at Feres in northeastern Greece, the News Week reported. “After all, we’re contributing towards European security and we are also contributing towards a more integrated and effective European asylum policy.” Athens has decided to extend by…

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that the United Kingdom would like to work with Turkey to build submarines. “Today, Turkey’s shipyards are those that have captured a certain place in the world maritime race,” Erdogan said, addressing a group of youth in Istanbul. “Those who come from America or Pakistan to build frigates for us, and those who say, ‘Can we build such an aircraft carrier in Turkey, can we build a submarine?’ At the moment, the UK wants to cooperate with us on the construction of submarines.” In addition to having close defence relations due to…