Hulusi Akar

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said he will visit Greece on May 31 for talks with his Greek counterpart.

The minister confirmed his visit with the state broadcaster TRT on May 26.

The fourth round of meeting on confidence-building measures between the delegations of the Turkish and Greek defense ministries will be held on May 26-27 via video conference, the Turkish Defense Ministry has said.

Turkey is in favor of a peaceful resolution of problems with Greece within the framework of international law and good neighborly relations, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on May 22.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar on May 20 said Turkey and Greece would have a meeting next week as part of confidence-building measures between the two neighbors.

The S-400 air defense systems Turkey has deployed on its lands pose no threat to anybody, the Turkish defense minister has said, reiterating the Russian system is a defensive system and will be activated only in case of an aerial attack against Turkey.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said late on May 12 that Turkey is determined to provide peace and security in northern Syria, noting its struggle with those attempting to disrupt peace will continue. 

During a visit to the southern Turkish province of Hatay near Syria, Akar held a videoconference with the commanders of troops serving along the border and beyond.

Iraq on May 3 summoned the top Turkish diplomat in Baghdad to protest the Turkish defense minister's weekend visit to a military base in northern Iraq.

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it handed the Turkish charge d'affaires a protest note over Hulusi Akar's visit to a Turkish base in northern Iraq.

Turkey's National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, along with high-level military officials, paid a visit on May 2 to the central Eskişehir province to monitor developments in the country's recent cross-border anti-terror operations.

A total of 44 PKK terror group members have been killed in a recent operation in northern Iraq, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on May 1.

At least 44 terrorists have been "neutralized" in Turkey's recent cross-border anti-terror operations, the country's defense minister said on May 1 evening.