Foreign Ministry

Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has embarked on a five-nation Africa tour, which includes a visit to South Africa, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Gabon and Sao Tome and Principe.

He will visit these countries between Jan. 8 and 14, the Foreign Ministry said in a written statement over the weekend.

Slovenia became a member of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) at the start of the year. This three-year membership is Slovenia's first of the body, which coordinates economic, social and environmental aspects of sustainable development.

The Bulgarian Christo Grozev, an investigative journalist from "Bellingcat", declared wanted by Russia, will be heard in the Bulgarian parliament today. Yesterday afternoon he received an invitation to speak in front of the parliamentary committee for control over the services.

Israel's national security minister's "provocative action" against Al-Aqsa Mosque is "unacceptable," Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu told his Israeli counterpart in a telephone call, the Foreign Ministry said on Jan. 4.

The Chinese government sharply criticized COVID-19 testing requirements imposed on visitors from China and threatened countermeasures against countries involved, which include the U.S. and several European nations.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan signed an appointment decree for Türkiye's ambassadors. Nine ambassadors are withdrawn back to the headquarters, according to the Official Gazette published on Dec. 31.

Slovenia has been a major donor to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s invasion and has recently donated ambulances and power equipment as part of a deliberate shift from military to non-military aid.

After extending efforts for establishing a "grain corridor" and for the exchange of prisoners, Türkiye will be taking on a new task in the Ukraine War by becoming a "unity corridor" for the war children to unite with their parents.

Türkiye has condemned a national emergency that was declared by U.S. President Joe Biden in the context of Syria in October 2019 and was renewed again on Oct. 12.

The decree contains "baseless allegations and accusations about our country," said the Foreign Ministry on Oct. 13.

Ankara has criticized the EU's 2022 Türkiye report as another example of Brussels' biased stance against the candidate country, rejecting its findings on backsliding of fundamental rights as well as its pro-Greek approach on the eastern Mediterranean dispute.