Archive for the ‘Erdogan’ Category

EU chiefs to see Erdogan in Turkey next week – Arab News

CAIRO: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi inaugurated Egypts Gypto Pharma City, the largest pharmaceutical city in the Middle East.

Gypto Pharma, also known as Medicine City, has been set up to produce safe and effective medicines at reasonable prices, and will manufacture coronavirus remedies and drugs for chronic diseases. Production of some vitamins will also be given priority.

The new city in Al-Khankah aims to increase cooperation between the state and the private sector in order to transform Egypt into a regional center for the pharmaceutical industry in the Middle East.

Gypto Pharma uses the latest technologies and automated machines to ensure production is of the highest quality.

Devices are self-cleaning so that the production process can continue without interruption.

President El-Sisi stressed the necessity of the city to produce high quality products, starting with the packaging.

The medicine package produced by the new city must be distinct so that the citys mark on its products cannot be tampered with, he added.

We started thinking about this project almost seven years ago.

It took a lot of time to create the most efficient factories using scientific methods so that the medicines produced in the city follow the European standards or the World Health Organization (WHO) standards, the president said.

The medicine city on an area of 180,000 square meters is the largest of its kind in the Middle East

It is set to become a regional center that attracts major international pharmaceutical companies.

We must have the ability to produce medicine at the highest levels. The antibiotic produced in the medicine city will be as efficient as its counterparts in the most prestigious countries in the world, El-Sisi added.

Presidency spokesman Bassam Rady said that Egypt produces 97 percent of its medicine needs.

Rady said that the city is a huge national project that aims to produce medicines scientifically in accordance with WHO standards.

The project comes in line with the series of initiatives in the field of health and medical care. The aim is to provide medicines to citizens at the highest possible level with upgraded facilities.

Rady added that medicine production is among one of the most important national projects that the state implemented to possess modern technological and industrial capacity in the field.

The project allows citizens to obtain high-quality and safe treatments, preventing any monopoliztic practices and controlling drug prices. It boosts the efforts undertaken by the state in the field of various medical and health initiatives.

He stated that the project places Egypt in the ranks of the countries producing medicine at the highest level.

The city works according to the latest and most accurate operating standards.

It applies the highest international quality standards, with a focus on human resources especially a young workforce capable of dealing with modern technology.

The city includes a regional center for manufacturing medicine in cooperation with foreign companies, and has plans to export to African, foreign and Arab countries. This is in addition to research and development laboratories.

The second phase will include entering into the field of specialized medicines, such as cancer treatments, to be offered at affordable prices to Egyptian citizens.

The city will include 160 lines to manufacture 150 types of medicines.

The first phase will also include manufacturing 150 million packages of medicine annually.

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EU chiefs to see Erdogan in Turkey next week - Arab News

Drugs and corruption scandal rocks Erdogan’s ruling party – Arab News

ANKARA: The Turkish government faced a tough challenge over the weekend after a video of Kursat Ayvatoglu, a member of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), was publicized on social media where he was seen snorting what is believed to be cocaine in a luxury car.

The news coincided with more than 400 kilograms of heroin being seized in south-eastern Turkey and more than 3.8 tons of marijuana seized in the countrys north-west in separate operations.

Although Ayvatoglu initially defended himself against drug charges by claiming he was just snorting powdered sugar that looks like cocaine as a joke, he later admitted in an official letter that he was a drug user and dealer.

Ayvatoglus cocaine use along with his ultra-luxurious lifestyle, that goes against the Islamist values that are promoted by the AKP, drew anger from every segment of the society, except for the AKP voters.

Several photos showed Ayvatoglu, in his 20s, using drugs, gambling, taking bubble baths, driving luxury cars that are not affordable with a parliamentary staff salary and consuming alcohol a lifestyle often criticized and sometimes criminalized by the AKP.

He was detained on March 26 and dismissed from his post at the AKP. Ayvatoglu is known as the adviser to AKP vice-chairman Hamza Dag with several photos showing him closely assisting the lawmaker in meetings and keeping an eye on him at all times, although Dag rejects the claims.

The employment contract of the person in question who has been working as bureau personnel at the headquarters for almost one year, has been ended, Dag announced in a tweet on Friday.

Ayvatoglu, who was employed there for about 3,000 Turkish liras ($370) per month, said in his press statement that he stood on the side of prominent politicians from the AKP in order to get strength and open new doors for him.

Several photos of Ayvatoglu with Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as well as other figures of the government also sparked widespread outrage.

They want to politicize the issue, Soylu said in reaction to the allegations of corruption.

After being released on condition of judicial control the day after, he was again arrested on March 28 after harsh criticisms on social media and the testimonies of other individuals who were in the same car and who confirmed he was using cocaine.

Im the victim here. I was blackmailed. Ill file a complaint against this, he said, adding that those who leaked the video were trying to get some money in exchange for deleting the footage.

Opposition lawmaker and a lawyer by profession Haluk Peksen submitted an inquiry to the investigative prosecutor about the origins of Ayvatoglus wealth.

Why was a forensic medicine examination not conducted? Why isnt there a single questioning about corrupt assets? What is the source of his wealth? Did he provide someone else powdered sugar as well? Are there any more powdered sugar stockpiles?, he asked.

The legislation requires the chief prosecutor to examine the assets of the suspects without getting permission. However, there is still no public declaration about whether this examination will be conducted.

In contrast, last week, a court sentenced Turkish rapper Burry Soprano to four years and two months in prison for inciting drug use in his song lyrics and video clips. In May 2018, another famous rapper named Ezhel was also arrested on the same charges. He was acquitted in his first hearing in June 2018.

Ayvatoglus case exposed a much deeper youth profile in Turkish politics, especially those who appear to be affiliated with the government.

Powdered sugar has become a symbol of a problematic human profile that has emerged in the last 20 years in Turkey and has spread especially among the youth. Even if they do not believe in the AKPs ideas, ideology or lifestyle, they always side with them. They talk about conservatism, nationalism, the Ottoman period, and they make Rabia salute of the Muslim Brotherhood in their social media posts, Deniz Zeyrek, a dissident journalist, wrote in his column at Sozcu newspaper.

They are labeling those who criticize the government, who talk about the injustice and double-standard practices of being a traitor or immoral. But they are doing their job in the background too and they are benefitting from all the blessings of power. They are getting rich. If they are in trouble, they take shelter in the shadow of the leader, the party. If necessary, they lie without hesitation or even hit the bottom of demagoguery.

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Drugs and corruption scandal rocks Erdogan's ruling party - Arab News

Erdogans tantrum is a sign of weakness – Financial Times

  1. Erdogans tantrum is a sign of weakness  Financial Times
  2. After History of Erratic Economic Policy, Erdogan Plunges Turkey Into Fresh Turmoil  The Wall Street Journal
  3. Erdogan urges investors to trust Turkeys economy, potential  KRQE News 13
  4. Erdogan calls on Turks to help stabilize the lira as investors fear a monetary crisis  CNBC
  5. The Politics Behind Erdogan's Central Bank Decision  Bloomberg
  6. View Full Coverage on Google News

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Erdogans tantrum is a sign of weakness - Financial Times

Women in Turkey rally against Erdogan decision to exit domestic violence treaty – FRANCE 24 English

Issued on: 27/03/2021 - 18:11

Several thousand women took to the streets in Istanbul on Saturday to demand Turkey reverse its decision to withdraw from an international treaty against domestic abuse which it once championed.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stunned European allies with last week's announcement that Turkey was pulling out of the Istanbul Convention, named after the Turkish city where it was drafted in 2011.

Turkey was one of the first signatories and women say their safety has been jeopardised by Erdogan's move against the European treaty.

Amid a heavy police presence, protesters gathered in an Istanbul seafront square waving purple flags and chanting slogans including "Murders of women are political". One placard read, "Protect women, not the perpetrators of violence."

"Withdrawing from the Istanbul Convention is a disaster for millions of women and children living in this country," Amnesty International Turkey Director Ece Unver told Reuters, calling for Ankara to reverse its decision.

World Health Organization data shows 38% of women in Turkey are subject to violence from a partner in their lifetime, compared with 25% in Europe.

Estimates of femicide rates in Turkey, for which there are no official figures, have roughly tripled over the last 10 years, according to a monitoring group. So far this year 87 women have been murdered by men or died under suspicious circumstances, it said.

"We will not give up. We will be here until we get our freedom and our convention back. We will not give up on the convention," said student Selin Asarlar Celik.

Conservatives in Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party say the convention, which stresses gender equality and forbids discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation, undermines family structures and encourages violence.

Officials said this week domestic law would protect Turkish women, not foreign treaties.

The protesters concerns were echoed by Ankara's Western allies, who denounced what they described as a baffling and unwarranted decision which risked undermining the rights of Turkish women.

(REUTERS)

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Women in Turkey rally against Erdogan decision to exit domestic violence treaty - FRANCE 24 English

Why Erdogan fired Turkey’s central bank governor – Middle East Eye

Even some of the most ardent supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan were truly shocked and angered last week by his decision to sack Naci Agbal, the central bank governor, less than five months after his appointment.

Turkish officials, technocrats, academics and others who have supported Erdogan in his ups and downs over theyears this time couldnt find any logical reason to fire Agbal, whose initial ascension to the job last November increased confidence in markets, stopped soaring US dollar exchange ratesand led to more than $15bn inflows into the country.

'Erdogan's relationship with Agbal hadbeen steadily deteriorating. Their communication wasn't good at all'

-Turkish official close to the president

"This was a very sad day. No one could reasonably explain why he did it so suddenly,"a Turkish official told Middle East Eye, speaking on condition of anonymity. "Why did you appoint him in the first place just months ago if you were going to fire him?"

When Erdogan appointed Agbal as central bank governor, the markets perceived it as a pragmatic move to stop the lira's free-fall and restore order and confidence into the Turkish economy with an orthodox monetary policy.

His sudden firing depreciated the lira by around 10 percentversus thedollar, moved the country risk premiums to the highest points ever, and evaporated the profits made this year on the Istanbul Stock Exchange.

However, for those who are close to Erdogan, the firing wasn't really a surprise. "Erdogan's relationship with Agbal hadbeen steadily deteriorating," said one Turkish official close to the president. "Their communication wasn't good at all."

Officials and sources close to the presidency say Erdogan was truly astonished by Agbal's interest rate increases. "Publicly and privately, Erdogan repeatedly told Agbal what he thinks of interest rate hikes. And Agbal seemed to have understood what the president wants," the official close to the presidentadded.

Erdogan is famous for his ideological stance againsthigh interest rates. Islam forbids it, but he also believes that high interest rates lead to high inflation, a controversial and heterodox theory that has roots in hisideological upbringing during the Islamist Welfare Party years.

When Erdogan appointed Agbal, who was previously his former budget director at the presidency,he also fell out with his son-in-law Berat Albayrak, who resigned as economy minister after the president discovered that the centralbank'sforex reserves were in tatters.

Erdogan named respected politician Lutfi Elvan asAlbayrak's replacement,and started to talk about a "bitter pill" that the government needed to swallow.

"When Erdogan talked about the bitter pill, he meant officially moving the interest rates to the unofficial market rate," a source close to the Turkish presidency said. "Agbal's first 475 points increase was approved by Erdogan."

Agbal's predecessor, Murat Uysal, usedbackdoor methods to increase rates while officially holding the main policy interest rate much lower.

When Agbal made his first rate increase in November, the official rate was increased to 15 percent, which was a limited tightening since the weighted average cost of funding had already risen to 14.36 percent.

ButAgbal didn't stop there. In December, he increased interest rates 200 points more, moving the basic rate to 17 percentdue to soaring inflation. "Erdogan didn't know anything about it. He saw it on TV," claimed the source close to the presidency.

A ruling AK Party insider said that a furiousErdogan telephoned Elvan, the economy minister, and told him that he was going to fire Agbal. "Elvan asked for more time to put the house in order. He convinced the president that Agbal would come to his senses," the source alleged.

As months passed by, the Turkish opposition increased itscriticism ofAlbayrak's financial policies. The CHP, the main opposition, has been running campaigns, blamingErdogan's son-in-lawfor burning through the central bank's more than $128bnreserves through public banks to hold the USD/lira rate steady since 2019.

Turkey's lira: The story of an epic downfall

"Where is this $128bn?" askedthe CHP's leaders in an official petition that asked for a parliamentary inquiry inDecember.

As public pressure built up, Erdogan felt a need to defend his former economy minister in February. "Albayrak has signatures on everything from the discovery of gas resources in Black Sea to mining in this country," Erdogan said in a public address. "Berat has taken many steps of reforms in the finance sector. [CHP] officials are a bunch of conmen."

The president also expected a statement of support from Agbal, who never gave it, further undermininghis relationship with Erdogan, multiple sources said.

The final blow for the president came as Agbal raised interest rates by 200 points last week, well above market expectations, giving Turkey the seventh-highest interest rateinthe world.

The move was seen as a further step to restore the credibility of the central bank, as inflation was once again soaring. "The case for a hike was compelling. Inflation has risen 165bps [basis points]since the last rate hike on December 24," Tim Ash, a London-based investor, said at the time.

"Against that backdrop, inflationary expectations are rising again, and there is not much sign of a reversal in dollarisation, which is key to the central bank replenishing forex reserves, which are at mission-critical low levels."

Several reports point out that Turkey has around$190bn inshort-term loans, mostly in the private sector, to be refinanced in the next 12 months, while the centralbank's net reserves stand at around minus $47bn.

However, according to the people close to him, Erdogan perceived the most recent rate increase as a direct challenge to his authority. "He could tolerate a small hike. But this was like a middle finger," the source close to the presidency said.

In terms of economics, Erdogan had his own reasons. Further interest rate increases would slow downeconomic growth, push up already awful unemployment rates and create discontent among his core supporters.

Levent Yilmaz, an economist, saidimportant business associations such as MUSIAD and TESKhave alsobeen troubledby the monetary tightening because it was an increasing burden for them.

'Erdogancould tolerate a small hike. But this was like a middle finger'

- Source close to the president

"The same groups initially released statements to support any financial move that would provide price stability," he said. "However, they felt a need to point out before the centralbank's last meetingthat high interest rates couldn't be maintained."

The leaders of the same business groups have been also meeting Erdogan and complaining abouthighrates, according to several Ankara sources.

Erdogan's replacement forgovernor isSahap Kavcioglu, a banker, academic andcolumnist for pro-government newspaper Yeni Safak, which had two front pages last week attacking Agbal for raising interest rates.

Since November, Kavcioglu had written a series of articlesdefending negative real interest rates. As Erdogan asserted, he also supported the unorthodox theory that high interest rates indirectly result in high inflation.

The source close to the presidency said Kavcioglu's articles belonged to the past. "Everyone needs to see that the articles were written as an outside observer and they were all about the specific circumstances," the source said. "I don't expect an unhinged credit boom either. But the banks could help small and big business owners, exporters and others to get going."

Yilmaz, also a columnist for Yeni Safak, said the economic model that dependson hot money inflows that are looking for short-term high interest rates must come to an end,as they don't really help the high street.

Why Pakistanis are buying up the Turkish lira

Ironically, some serious Turkish economistswho are critical of Erdoganagree thathigh interest rates could put the country in a viciouscycleof further increases.

Economist Cetin Unsalan,in an article published after the central bank's hike last week, saidthat thestrategy of high interest rates hadn'tsucceeded inconvincinglocals to sell more than $200bnthat is sitting in private banks.

Unsalan wasn't alone. Cuneyt Akman, a respected economist, also said the same week on Twitter that Turkey had been pouring its own resources into so-called investors.

"If you don't hike the interest rates, the exchange rate rises and then they withdraw forexfromthe country [on profit]. If you hike the rates, they get a very high interest income," he said in a series of tweets. "So the foreigners make 20 percentto 25 percentprofit out of the interest rates or forex in any case. Hiking the interest rate isn't a solution."

Akman told MEE that even though he isn't against short-term and temporary rate hikes, there were two things that need to be addressed: inflation and financial independence.

"The government needs to stop increasing its budget deficit by providing lucrative contracts to its proponents," he said. "Cutting the budget deficit and ending the funding for mega projects that amount to $75bn would automatically decrease inflation and eventually remove the need for interest rate hikes."

'Excessive foreign liquidity inflows should also be regulated and neutralised by the centralbank. More hot money inflows also lead into more inflation'

-Cuneyt Akman, economist

Akman said the same money could be used for economic development instead of directly pumping it into construction and domestic consumption, which triggers high inflation and currency shocks.

He added that the Turkish private sector contracted a huge foreign debt between 2010-2017, which putcompanies in a never-ending circle of trying to find more loans to finance them. "Excessive foreign liquidity inflows should also be regulated and neutralised by the centralbank. More hot money inflows also lead to more inflation," he said.

One thing everyone agrees on isthat being at the helm of the Turkish economy is a hard job. One British news outlet joked this week that "the central bank hot seat" was even less secure than being Chelsea Football Club's manager,asTurkey now hasits fourth governor in less than two years.

Maybe that's why Agbalthanked Erdogan after his firing. "I present my gratitude [to president Erdogan] for being sacked as of today," Agbal tweeted.

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Why Erdogan fired Turkey's central bank governor - Middle East Eye