Legislatures

The European Union and Turkey pressed each other on Thursday to take concrete steps to improve relations long strained by  disagreements over energy, migration and Ankara's human rights record.

Turkey's Constitutional Court once again ruled on Jan. 21 that the rights of former main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) lawmaker Enis Berberoğlu were breached, noting that the verdict given earlier has not been implemented yet.

CHP Group Deputy Chair Engin Altay has called on high and local courts to meet the demand of the Constitutional Court.

Turkey and the European Union have started the year positively and steps to restart talks with Greece over hydrocarbons in the Mediterranean are welcome, but the EU remains concerned about human rights, the bloc's top envoy said on Thursday.

The inauguration ceremony called "United America" will not resemble previous inaugurations, because the organizers and local authorities in Washington called on Americans not to come but to follow the ceremony online in their homes.
Security in Washington will be strengthened while the Pentagon announced that it will send 20.000 National Guard soldiers.

An early election is inevitable in Turkey, the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) leader, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, said on Jan. 18, reiterating the opposition argument that citizens want snap elections due to their economic problems.

President-elect Joe Biden unveiled a $1.9 trillion coronavirus plan on Jan. 14 to end "a crisis of deep human suffering" by speeding up vaccines and pumping out financial help to those struggling with the pandemic's prolonged economic fallout.

The House made history Wednesday by impeaching a president for a second time, indicting President Trump a week before he leaves office for inciting a riot with false claims of a stolen election that led to the storming of the Capitol and five deaths.

Manfred Weber, leader of the European People's Party in the European Parliament, has backed the proposal put forward by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Tuesday for the introduction of a coronavirus vaccination certificate that would ease travel between member-states in the bloc.

Discussions are being held with representatives of the civil society, included, regarding the issue of demolishing the walls around the Parliament Palace, Senate President Anca Dragu told an interview for AGERPRES. According to Anca Dragu, this is a larger 'opening up' project, which goes 'beyond the physicality of the wall's demolition'.

European Commission foreign affairs spokesman Peter Stano has highlighted the importance of a resumption of exploratory talks between Athens and Ankara.