Turkey

While Turkey has been vying for influence in Central Asia playing the Turkic card and leveraging the potential of the Turkic connect ever since the independence of these states in1991, in situations such as the political disturbance that Kazakhstan witnessed recently, Turkey remained a mere witness without any ability to contribute to defending Kazakhstan or facilitating any form of assistance to the Kazakhs.

The operation, dubbed Winter Eagle, was aimed at destroying shelters, bunkers, caves, tunnels, ammunition depots, headquarters, and training camps in areas of Derik, Sincar, and Karacak, Xinhua news agency cited the Ministry as saying in a statement Turkish warplanes returned to their bases safely after the military operation, according to the statement, which did not specify the number of casualties.

The alleged persons were killed on Saturday. The tension is ongoing between Turkey and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the Ayn Issa area in the countryside of Raqqa, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

"We want peace to prevail in the region, and for this, we are ready to do our part," he told reporters in Istanbul after Friday prayers. The Turkish leader revealed his plan to discuss the latest developments in Ukraine with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin either on the phone or during a possible visit to Moscow in the upcoming days, Xinhua news agency reported.

The government's plan has managed to support the embattled currency at the eleventh hour. From an all-time low of 18.35 liras per US dollar, it traded at around 12.22 liras against the greenback on Wednesday, according to the country's central bank. However, economists said the currency turmoil, which has marked this year, has left the country's economy vulnerable to further shocks in 2022, especially high inflation, Xinhua news agency reported.

The first Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit was held in Istanbul, the second in Malabo. Over 100 government ministers and 16 Presidents from Africa attended the summit, which was held under the theme, ‘Enhanced Partnership for Common Development and Prosperity. Cooperation between Ankara and Africa, which is steadily increasing, is of vital importance to Turkey. Trade volume between Turkey and Africa is enormous.

The Ministry of Transportation and Civil Aviation confirmed that discussions were underway with the visiting joint Turkish-Qatari delegation, Khaama Press reported. "The joint Turkish-Qatari technical team came to Kabul on Thursday and held meetings with technical teams of the Islamic Emirate. These meetings will continue and in the near future they will reach an agreement in light of the country's national interests," TOLO News quoted Imamuddin Ahmadi, a spokesman of the Ministry, as saying.

The list included 454 members of the Gulen Movement, whom the Turkish government accused of being behind the failed coup on July 15, 2016, reports Xinhua news agency. The assets of the US-based Niagara Foundation were also frozen.

Talking to the media in Islamabad, Information and Broadcasting minister said focal persons have been named for media sharing, and the joint media network will be formed. The Minister said issues of extremism need to be tackled in Pakistan, Malaysia and other Muslim countries. He also suggested that under the OIC platform, a unit of scholars should be named to provide guidance on religious issues.

The rate has now decreased from 15 per cent to 14 per cent, prompting the lira to lose as much as 6.2 percent against the dollar to trade at 15.72 liras per dollar, reports Xinhua news agency. The country's annual inflation rose to 21.31 per cent in November, the highest level in more than three years, as prices continued to climb, clouding consumer outlook in the country.