Syria

The Turkish parliament on Oct. 26 passed a motion that extends authorization for the government's troop deployment in Iraq and Syria for another two years.

The motion underlined that the developments in the regions adjacent to Turkey's southern land borders and the risks and threats posed by the ongoing environment of conflict increasingly continue. 

Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu has said they do not want any more refugees in Turkey and pledged to restore ties with the Syrian regime if his party comes to power

"We don't want more refugees and asylum seekers," Kılıçdaroğlu said on Oct. 26, speaking at the CHP's parliamentary group meeting.

Turkey's defense minister said he had a "positive" meeting with his Greek counterpart in Brussels, on the sidelines of a gathering of their NATO colleagues.

"We had a positive and constructive meeting with the Greek defense minister (Nikos Panagiotopoulos)," Hulusi Akar told reporters late on Oct. 22.

"We expect to see the positive results of this meeting in the coming days."

In September, a total of 1,626 third-country nationals were detained in Bulgaria, according to statistics from the Ministry of Interior. Of these, 154 people were detained at the entrance to the state border, 128 at the exit without registration, and 1344 were found to be staying illegally in the interior of the country.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu spoke on Oct. 21 over the phone with his counterparts from both Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Çavuşoğlu and Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian discussed regional issues, especially developments related to Afghanistan and Syria, as well as bilateral relations, said a Foreign Ministry statement.

Libya, Iran, Syria and Yemen are currently classified as being a Level 1 risk

An exhibition featuring a selection of photographs from the international news photography competition, the Istanbul Photo Awards 2021, kicked off in New York on Oct. 18.

An opening ceremony was held at the newly-inaugurated Türkevi Center, or Turkish House, in New York City.

The Turkish presidency on Oct. 20 submitted a motion to parliament to extend the state's authority to launch cross-border military operations in northern Iraq and Syria for one more year.

A bomb attack on an army bus in Damascus killed at least 13 people on Oct. 20 in the bloodiest such attack in years, the SANA state news agency reported.

"A terrorist bombing using two explosive devices targeted a passing bus" at a key bridge in the capital, the news agency said, reporting an initial casualty toll of 13 dead and three wounded.

In the wake of Greece's defense agreements with France and the United States, the 9th Greece-Egypt-Cyprus Tripartite Summit is taking place today, Tuesday, in Athens, at which key regional policy issues are on the table, focusing on developments in the Eastern Mediterranean. the Cyprus issue and Libya, as well as the dynamics of cooperation having as a spearhead the energy sector.