Department of State

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s strong-worded criticism against Israel and the United States over the former’s military operations in Gaza has transformed into a diplomatic spat between Ankara and Washington, with Erdoğan calling for the U.S. to be “self-critical” over its Israel policy. 

One of the questions asked to presidential candidate Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu during a press gathering in Istanbul on July 17 was his opinion about a statement by John Bass, the U.S.

The Obama administration has defended remarks made by John Bass, who has been nominated as the new U.S. ambassador to Ankara, after he said Turkey is “drifting in the direction” of authoritarianism.

Ukrainian forces were hunting for the crew of a downed military plane that Kyiv said was "likely" shot down from Russia, as Washington accused Moscow of supplying military hardware to the rebels.
      

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will press his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif to make "critical choices" in a second straight day of talks over Tehran's nuclear programme on Monday, a U.S. official said.
   

President to confer with U.S. official Nuland

BELGRADE -- Serbian President Tomislav Nikolić will meet with U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for European and Euroasian Affairs Victoria Nuland.

The meeting will take place on Sunday, the president's press service announced on Friday.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday allegations that a German man worked as a double agent for U.S. intelligence were serious and, if true, were a clear contradiction of what cooperation between partners is supposed to be about.
   

The United States on Wednesday called on Azerbaijan and Armenia to accept an invitation to hold a summit in Paris to try to resolve the frozen conflict of Nagorny Karabakh.
      

Secretary of State John Kerry signaled on Friday that the U.S. hopes to enlist moderate Syrian opposition fighters that the Obama administration has reluctantly decided to arm and train in the battle against militant extremists in neighboring Iraq.

Turkey has strongly criticized a U.S. House committee bill that directs the State Department to monitor the return of property confiscated from Christians in Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.