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Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, warned on Friday of legalising renegade Libyan General, Khalifa Haftar, at the expense of the internationally-backed government in Tripoli, Anadolu Agency reports.

Speaking to journalists following his visit to Malaysia, Erdogan disclosed: Haftar is not politically legal. There are certain sides who seek to give him legitimacy, while Fayiz Al-Sarraj (head of UN-backed Libyan government) is the leader and legal representative.

Erdogan noted that Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, France and Italy are taking part in this endeavour. He also expressed his disappointment in Russias covert involvement.

We cannot stay idle regarding the Russian Wagner Group mercenaries in Libya, he announced.

Read: Turkeys Erdogan says ready to boost military support to Libya

Wagner Group contractors are fighting alongside General Haftar, against the internationally-recognised government in Tripoli.

Erdogans warning came following Russian Interfax News reporting a Russian Foreign Ministry source expressing Moscows worries regarding the possibility that Turkey may send forces to Libya, adding that the security pact between Ankara and Tripoli raises many questions.

On Thursday, the Libyan Ministerial Council unanimously approved the Memorandum of Understandings (MoU) with Turkey, a statement disclosed.

Ankara and Tripoli signed two MoUs on 27 November one relating to military and security cooperation, and the other delimiting maritime boundaries in the East Mediterranean, between both sides.

Read: How Libyas UN recognised government is doing everything but its job

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Erdogan warns of legalising Haftar at the expense of UN-backed Libyan government - Middle East Monitor

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned that lawmakers in his country may recognize the deaths of Native Americans as a genocide after Congress rebuffed Turkey and voted to acknowledge and condemn the Armenian genocide.

The proposed move, which would be largely symbolic, came after the Senate unanimously passed a bill recognizing the Turkish genocide of more than a million Armenians in the early 20th century.

Erdogan threatened the tit-for-tat while speaking on a pro-government news channel on Monday, according to the Independent.

We should oppose [the United States] by reciprocating such decisions in parliament. And that is what we will do, Erdogan said. Can we speak about America without mentioning [Native Americans]?

It is a shameful moment in U.S. history, he added.

Before passing in the Senate, the bipartisan legislation condemning the Armenian genocide was approved in the House by a 405-11 vote. The vote is a direct rebuke to Turkey, which has lobbied against referring to the slayings as a genocide. Between 1915 and 1923, an estimated 1.5 million Armenians died at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.

Last weeks vote came after three Republicans had previously voted to block the legislation in the Senate at the urging of the White House, which worried the move would damage an already strained relationship with the NATO ally.

Historians estimate that millions of Native Americans died during the European conquest of North and South America. Most of those deaths are believed to have been caused by diseases brought over from Europe.

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Erdogan threatens to recognize Native American deaths as genocide after US acknowledges Armenian genocide - Washington Examiner

Donald Trump's administrationhas rejected a US Senate resolution recognising the Armenian genocide, just a day after Turkish president RecepTayyip Erdoganthreatened to recognise the killing of Native Americans in retaliation.

The Senate measure was rejected by the State Department on Tuesday, with a spokesperson for the department indicating that US position on the matter did not change.

"The position of the Administration has not changed," said spokesperson Morgan Ortagus, in a statement to the Hill. "Our views are reflected in the President's definitive statement on the issue from last April."

Sharing the full story, not just the headlines

The US Senate had passed a resolution unanimously last week to recognise the Armenian genocide as a matter of foreign policy, in a rare showing of bipartisanship on a deeply divisive issue and in spite of the Trump administration's objections. It marked the first time that the US Congress had formally designated the 1915 killings of an estimated 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire as a genocide.

"To overlook human suffering is not who we are as a people," said senator Robert Menendez, a Democrat from New Jersey who co-sponsored the legislation alongside Texas Republican senator Ted Cruz, during an emotional speech moments before the legislation was passed. "It is not what we stand for as a nation. We are better than that, and our foreign policy should always reflect this."

Armenian people carry torches during a march to commemorate the mass killings of Armenians

Getty

Armenian people take part in a march in commemoration of the 101th anniversary of the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman forces in 1915

Getty

People hold a flag during the laying of the flowers at the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Getty

President Serzh Sargsyan and actor George Clooney attend the laying of the flowers at the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Getty

Armenian clergymen, US actor George Clooney, center, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, second right front, and guests attend a ceremony at a memorial to Armenians killed by the Ottoman Turks, in Yerevan

AP

Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian (C,R) and US actor George Clooney (C) attend a ceremony at the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Getty

A general view of attendees and mount Ararat during the laying of the flowers at the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Getty

Lebanese of Armenian descent burn an effigy of Turkish president Erdogan during a protest in front the house of Turkish Ambassador to mark the 101st anniversary of the mass killing of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire in 1915, near Beirut, Lebanon

EPA

Activists hold portraits of victims during a silent demonstration to commemorate the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in Istanbul

Reuters

Activists hold portraits of victims during a silent demonstration to commemorate the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in Istanbul

Reuters

Armenian people carry torches during a march to commemorate the mass killings of Armenians

Getty

Armenian people take part in a march in commemoration of the 101th anniversary of the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman forces in 1915

Getty

People hold a flag during the laying of the flowers at the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Getty

President Serzh Sargsyan and actor George Clooney attend the laying of the flowers at the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Getty

Armenian clergymen, US actor George Clooney, center, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, second right front, and guests attend a ceremony at a memorial to Armenians killed by the Ottoman Turks, in Yerevan

AP

Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian (C,R) and US actor George Clooney (C) attend a ceremony at the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Getty

A general view of attendees and mount Ararat during the laying of the flowers at the Genocide Memorial in Yerevan

Getty

Lebanese of Armenian descent burn an effigy of Turkish president Erdogan during a protest in front the house of Turkish Ambassador to mark the 101st anniversary of the mass killing of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire in 1915, near Beirut, Lebanon

EPA

Activists hold portraits of victims during a silent demonstration to commemorate the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in Istanbul

Reuters

Activists hold portraits of victims during a silent demonstration to commemorate the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in Istanbul

Reuters

The Senate vote came after the House approved the measure last month, with a vote that came while Mr Trump and Mr Erdogan were meeting in the Oval Office.

Following the Senate vote last week, Mr Erdogan threatened to recognise the killing of Native Americans by European settlers in America, as they moved across the country and displaced and killed entire populations.

"We should oppose [the US] by reciprocating such decisions in parliament. And that is what we will do," Mr Erdogan said during an interview on the pro-government A Haber news channel.

"Can we speak about America without mentioning [Native Americans]? It is a shameful moment in US history," he continued.

In its statement, the State Department pointed to Mr Trump's 24 April comments, which fell on the Global Armenian Remembrance Day. During his statement, Mr Trump recognised that over a million and a half Armenians were "deported, massacred or marched to their deaths" under the rule of the Ottoman Empire.

He did not describe the events as genocide. While former president Barack Obama described the events as a genocide as a candidate in 2008, his administration later assured the Turkish government that it did not support a resolution recognising the killings as a genocide.

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Trump refuses to back recognition of Armenian genocide after Erdogan threat - The Independent

By Prateek Chakraborty | Updated: Dec 20, 2019 18:43 IST

New Delhi [India], Dec 20 (ANI): Describing the military offensive launched by Turkey as an attempt to divert public attention after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ruling party suffered a setback in this year's municipal elections, M Behzad Fatmi, a Turkish political writer and commentator, has said that the operation helped the government to silence rising voices of the opposition parties in the country.In an e-mail interview to ANI on Friday, Fatmi said that prominent Justice and Development (AKP) leaders like Ali Babacan and Ahmet Davutoglu, who were once Erdogan allies, decided to break away from the party and form their own parties to challenge the Erdogan regime.Fatmi explained how prior to the military offensive, Erdogan's hold over Turkey's politics had dwindled significantly, as was evident from the ruling party's loss in major cities including in Istanbul -- a city where Erdogan had served as a Mayor in the 1990s prior to occupying the top post of the country and had described the seat as the key to winning Turkish elections."Launching an offensive in Syria helped the Erdogan regime to silence rising opposition voices in the country. The ruling AKP party had just lost major cities like Istanbul and Ankara in the municipal elections, giving the opposition parties a reason to be assertive for the first time since the AKP had come to power more than fifteen years ago. With his immense popularity among both the conservative and liberal voters, the new Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was presenting an unprecedented challenge to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan," he said."Moreover, prominent faces from within the AKP party like Abdullah Gul, Ali Babacan and Ahmet Davutoglu were preparing to form parties of their own to challenge the ruling party. This offensive effectively diverted public attention from all these debates and development," he added."The AKP's hold over Turkey's politics has certainly reduced significantly. In a poll conducted before the municipal elections, it was found that the AKP's vote share had come down to 36 per cent. In the words of Erdogan himself -- 'those who win Istanbul, win Turkey', which also means that who lose Istanbul, lose Turkey," Fatmi said.On October 9, Turkey had launched its unilateral military operation in north-east Syria to remove Kurdish-led forces from the border area. The move came days after the US announced it was withdrawing its troops from the region, leaving the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), without American military support.Several countries, including India, had condemned Turkey's operation in Syria, a war-ravaged country. New Delhi said that Ankara's actions can undermine "stability in the region" and has the potential for causing humanitarian and civilian distress. (ANI)

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Erdogan's offensive in Syria was designed to divert attention from domestic issues: Expert - ANI News

2019-12-15T22:12:11+00:00 2019-12-15T22:12:11+00:00 2019-12-16T16:48:10+00:00.

Antigoni Zachari

Recep Tayyip Erdogan mentioned that he is open to the idea of Larkin playing for the Turkish National Team.

By Eurohoops team / info@eurohoops.net

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan mentioned during a TV interview that he is open to giving Shane Larkin a Turkish passport so the player can join the national team.

We will do what we need to do about it. We would like to see such a successful basketball player in our national team. Larkin can take our national team to very good results, commented Erdogan.

Larkin himself had expressed his interest to join the Turkish national team in the future, with Efes coach Ergin Ataman also supporting the idea of Larkin playing for the national team.

National team coach Ufuk Sarica also addressed the matter and the possible difficulties of the player getting a Turkish passport, however, it seems that after Erdogans comment the paperwork can be a formality.

It will remain to be seen if he finally gets to follow the path of fellow American-born and naturalized Turkish guards, like Scottie Wilbekin and Bobby Dixon. Larkin reacted with the following tweet.

It has to be noted, of course, that under FIBA rules only one naturalized player can be used in the final roster of any national team.

Photo: EuroLeague

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Erdogan on Larkin receiving a Turkish passport: We will do what we need to - Eurohoops