Hulusi

Turkey's national defense minister on on Aug. 19 continued with his busy schedule of diplomatic meetings as part of the four-day International Defense Industries Fair (IDEF) in Istanbul. 

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Hulusi Akar and his Togolese counterpart Marguerite Gnakade met in Istanbul and signed a military framework agreement at the meeting.

Turkish National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, together with military commanders, conducted on-site inspections of measures taken on the Iranian border on Aug. 14. 

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Akar, Chief of General Staff Gen. Yaşar Güler, and Land Forces Commander Gen. Musa Avsever were welcomed at Van Ferit Melen Airport.

Turkey has taken additional measures on its border with Iran in the face of the increasing number of Afghan nationals who are fleeing the Taliban, the defense minister has said, assuring that the Turkish authorities are exerting great efforts for the border security of the country.

The Turkish defense minister on June 19 discussed bilateral security and regional issues with his U.S. counterpart over the phone.

According to Turkey's Defense Ministry, Hulusi Akar and Lloyd James Austin had "a positive and constructive" conversation.

The exchange comes days after a NATO summit in Brussels on June 14.

The Turkish defense minister met his British and Italian counterparts on Italy's Sicily island on June 11. 

During the tripartite talks, which took place on the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier anchored in the Port of Augusta, Hulusi Akar, Ben Wallace, and Lorenzo Guerini discussed relations in the field of defense and security and regional issues.

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.

Turkish National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar met with Britain's Secretary of Defense Ben Wallace in London on April 8.

Wallace welcomed the visiting Turkish minister at the Horse Guards building in Embankment, before Akar inspected troops.

Wallace and Akar, later on, walked to the Defense Ministry offices to hold bilateral talks.

Greek fighter jets have harassed a Turkish research ship in the international waters of the Aegean Sea, and the provocation was reciprocated accordingly, the Turkish defense minister announced on Feb. 23.

This week Turkey signaled that it could give ground on the S-400 missiles it purchased from Russia, with Defense Minister Hulusi Akar suggesting Turkey could adopt the so-called "Crete Model'' - which was used to solve a dispute between Greece, Cyprus, and Turkey in the 1990s over S-300s Nicosia had purchased - to deal with this issue.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar has reiterated claims that Greece is in violation of international treaties by continuing to maintain troops on several islands of the eastern Aegean, adding that Greek military officials have even conducted "provocative" visits to these islands.