Istanbul: Turkey is to scrap the office of the prime minister in a historic switch under a government-backed proposal for a new presidential system, a cabinet minister said on Thursday. File photo of Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Forestry and Water Affairs Minister Veysel Eroglu said there would be one and possibly two vice presidents under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the new format, which is expected to be submitted to a referendum next year. “There... 

Istanbul: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan heads to Russia this week as part of efforts to rebuild ties shattered by Turkey’s downing of a Russian warplane last year — just as Turkey’s relations with traditional allies the United States and Europe show increasing strain amid Ankara’s crackdown following a failed coup. File photo of Erdogan with Putin. Tuesday’s visit to St. Petersburg for talks with Russian President Vladimir... 

ISTANBUL, Turkey America’s highest-ranking military officer sought on Monday to soothe strained ties with NATO ally Turkey, which was angered by the West’s response to a failed military coup and by an apparent U.S. reluctance to hand over the cleric it says was responsible. The fallout from the abortive coup on July 15, in which more than 230 people were killed as mutinous soldiers commandeered fighter jets, helicopters and tanks in... 

Ankara: Turkey’s prime minister on Wednesday warned that the crackdown following a failed coup was not over, as authorities issued arrest warrants for dozens of former newspaper staff. Turkey’s Prime Minister Binali Yildirim. A senior minister also revealed that a major army shake-up had been planned just before the putsch; suggesting elements in the military made the dramatic move because they knew they were about to be purged. Since... 

Istanbul: A top Turkish official on Friday accused the United States of “standing up for savages” by not immediately handing over a US-based Muslim cleric who the government claims orchestrated last week’s failed coup. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks after an emergency meeting of the government in Ankara, Turkey. Speaking in Washington, President Barack Obama said there was a legal process for extradition and... 

By now it seems that that the audacious coup attempt in Turkey by a section of the country’s military forces has failed to unseat President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. If that is the case — the situation is extremely fluid still — it is probably for the better because toppling of the country’s elected leader may dangerously destabilise a western ally in a region already reeling from war, terrorism and mass migration. Turkey President Recep...