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Ankara slams EU report on Turkey’s membership bid as unjust and biased

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Ankara slams EU report on Turkey’s membership bid as unjust and biased

The report on Turkey’s progress towards meeting standards for EU membership says Ankara is ‘backsliding’.

Turkey’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has slammed the European Commission’s annual report assessing its long-stalled bid to join the European Union, saying it was unjust and biased.

The report, published on Wednesday by the EU’s executive arm, accused Ankara of “serious backsliding” on democratic standards, the rule of law, human rights and judicial independence.

“We categorically reject unfounded claims and unjust criticisms, particularly on the political criteria and the Chapter on Judiciary and Fundamental Rights,” the Turkish ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

The Commission also said Turkey did not comply with the principles of the rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms in its counterterrorism operations.

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“The government has a legitimate right and a responsibility to fight terrorism, but it is essential that it does so in full compliance with the principles of the rule of law, human rights, and fundamental freedoms,” the report said.

The Turkish ministry said the allegations were unfair and highlighted “the insincerity of EU’s approach and a clear double-standard”, adding that fundamental rights issues were contentious even among EU member states.

The Commission’s report is meant to update Turkey’s progress towards meeting standards for EU membership and could strain ties that are already troubled over immigration and, more recently, the war between Israel and the Hamas armed group in Gaza.

Since Israel started bombarding the Gaza Strip on October 7, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Israel of “behaving like a war criminal” and blamed the West for being the “main culprit behind the massacre unfolding”.

Long-delayed EU bid

Turkey began talks to join the EU in 2005, but that bid has long been frozen due to rights concerns and foreign policy rifts.

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The EU has grown frustrated by Turkey’s stance on issues such as Syria, Cyprus, and Libya as well as its competing territorial claims with Greece to islands in the Aegean Sea.

On September 13, the European Parliament adopted a report by the European Commission stating Turkey’s EU accession process “cannot be resumed” without a “drastic change of course” by Ankara.

Erdogan responded that Ankara could “part ways with the EU” if necessary.

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Rodrigo Duterte, Philippine Ex-President, Is Arrested on I.C.C. Warrant

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Rodrigo Duterte, Philippine Ex-President, Is Arrested on I.C.C. Warrant

Rodrigo Duterte, the former president of the Philippines, was arrested on Tuesday in Manila, after the International Criminal Court issued a warrant accusing him of crimes against humanity in his war on drugs in which, human rights groups say, tens of thousands of Filipinos were summarily executed.

He was taken into custody at the airport in Manila after returning from a trip to Hong Kong, according to the Philippine government. Mr. Duterte’s lawyer, Salvador Panelo, said the arrest was unlawful, partly because the Philippines withdrew from the court while Mr. Duterte was in office.

Mr. Duterte, 79, who left office in 2022, is a populist firebrand who remains one of the Philippines’ most influential politicians, and he has enjoyed relative immunity despite several accusations against him in connection with his antidrug campaign.

But Mr. Duterte’s arrest could be a major step toward accountability for thousands of Filipinos who have long sought justice for their loved ones, many of whom were gunned down by police officers, hit men and vigilantes. Activists say the vast majority of victims were poor, urban Filipinos, some of whom were minors and people who had nothing to do with the drug trade.

Only a handful of people have been convicted in connection with the killings, which rights groups say totaled roughly 30,000.

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“I am very happy that Duterte has been arrested so we can finally have justice,” said Cristina Jumola, whose three sons were killed during the drug war. “We waited so long for this.”

It was unclear whether Mr. Duterte would be forced to surrender to the I.C.C., which is based in The Hague. The case will be a high-profile test of the court, which in recent months has sought the arrest of Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the head of the military junta in Myanmar, Min Aung Hlaing, accusing both men of crimes against humanity.

Minutes before he was arrested, Mr. Duterte was characteristically defiant.

“You would have to kill me first, if you are going to ally with white foreigners,” Mr. Duterte said as he was getting off the plane from Hong Kong, according to a video posted by GMA News, a Philippine broadcaster.

For years, Mr. Duterte seemed untouchable. As mayor of Davao, the second-largest city in the Philippines, for more than two decades, he ran a deadly antidrug crackdown with impunity. In 2016, he parlayed his law-and-order credentials into a victory in the presidential election, even though experts said the country did not have an outsized problem with drugs.

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At his final campaign rally that year, Mr. Duterte told the crowd to “forget the laws on human rights.”

“You drug pushers, holdup men and do-nothings, you better go out,” he said. “Because I’ll kill you.” He said he would give himself and his security forces immunity from prosecution and pardon himself “for the crime of multiple murder.”

While in office, Mr. Duterte withdrew the Philippines from the I.C.C., which had begun looking into the extrajudicial killings.

Mr. Panelo, Mr. Duterte’s lawyer, said the arrest was unlawful in part because the Philippine police had not allowed the former president’s attorneys to meet him at the airport. He said he planned to bring criminal complaints against the police and the officials who ordered the arrest.

He added that the arrest was illegal because the arrest warrant “comes from a spurious source, the I.C.C., which has no jurisdiction over the Philippines.”

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But the Philippines is still a member of Interpol, which can seek the arrest of Mr. Duterte on behalf of the I.C.C. A representative of the international organization was present when Mr. Duterte was arrested.

This is a developing story.

Marlise Simons contributed reporting from Paris.

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Rubio says mineral deal ‘not main topic on agenda’ in Ukraine meeting

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Rubio says mineral deal ‘not main topic on agenda’ in Ukraine meeting

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Monday that the mineral deal, sought by President Donald Trump, is “not the main topic on the agenda” for the meeting set with the Ukrainian delegation in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. 

“I wouldn’t prejudge tomorrow about whether or not we have a minerals deal,” he told reporters on board a flight to Saudi Arabia. “It’s an important topic, but it’s not the main topic on the agenda.

“The minerals deal is on the table that’s continuing to be worked on – it’s not part of this conversation, per se,” he said, noting that Tuesday’s meeting in Jeddah can be considered successful even without securing such an agreement.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with the media on his military airplane as he flies to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, March 10, 2025. (Saul Loeb/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

LITHUANIAN DEFENSE MINISTER: ONLY WAY TO NEGOTIATE WITH RUSSIA IS WITH A ‘GUN ON THE TABLE’

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“It’s certainly a deal the president wants to see done, but it doesn’t necessarily have to happen tomorrow,” Rubio added. 

The Ukrainian delegation is set to include Andriy Yermak, head of the presidential office, Andrii Sybiha, minister of foreign affairs, Pavlo Palisa, colonel of armed forces of Ukraine and an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as well as Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, who was not only involved in initial talks with Russia following its February 2022 invasion, but who also survived a poisoning attack after a peace meeting in March that year. 

Rubio will meet with the delegation in the city of Jeddah around noon local time on Tuesday.

“The important point in this meeting is to establish clearly their intentions, their desire, as they’ve said publicly now, numerous times, to reach a point where peace is possible,” Rubio said, adding that he will need to be assured that Kyiv is prepared to make some hard decisions, like giving up territory seized by Russia, in order to end the three-year war. 

Ukraine's National Police said seven people are dead and five wounded in a mortar strike east of Kyiv, in Makariv. (National Police of Ukraine)

Ukraine’s National Police said seven people are dead and five wounded in a mortar strike east of Kyiv, in Makariv. (National Police of Ukraine)

“Both sides need to come to an understanding,” he said. “The Russians can’t conquer all of Ukraine, and obviously it will be very difficult for Ukraine, in any reasonable time period, to sort of force the Russians back all the way to where they were in 2014. So the only solution to this war is diplomacy and getting them to a table where that’s possible.

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 “Then we’ll have to determine how far they are from the Russian position, which we don’t know yet either. And then once you understand where both sides truly are, it gives you a sense of how big the divide is and how hard it’s going to be,” Rubio explained. “I’m hoping it’ll be a positive interaction along those lines.”

Rubio lands in Saudi Arabia

Secretary of State Marco Rubio greets well-wishers upon arrival at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah on March 10, 2025. (Saul Loeb/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

EU CHIEF DIPLOMAT WARNS TRUMP PUTIN ‘DOESN’T WANT PEACE’

Steve Witkoff, special envoy to the Middle East who has increasingly been involved with the talks regarding Ukraine and Russia, told Fox News’ Dana Perino on “America’s Newsroom” Monday morning, that the Trump administration has “gone a long way” to “narrow the differences” when dealing with Moscow and to get it to the negotiating table – though he did not go into detail. 

Witkoff suggested relations with Ukraine began to once again improve after Zelenskyy sent Trump a letter in which he apologized for the Oval Office exchange that went sour late last month after he refused to sign a mineral deal and angered the Trump administration – resulting in a series of explosive outbursts on live TV. 

While a mineral deal is unlikely to be achieved this week, according to Rubio, he said he hopes that with a successful meeting in Jeddah, he can secure the resumption of aid to Ukraine, though he did not detail if this would include the defensive aid the Trump administration halted, despite Russia’s continued bombardment against Ukrainian targets, or the intelligence sharing which the U.S. also stopped following the Oval Office showdown. 

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“The pause in aid broadly is something I hope we can resolve,” Rubio said. “I think what happens tomorrow will be key to that.”

Trump Zelensky

Trump and Zelensky were involved in an Oval Office shouting match. (Fox News )

Rubio also said that Russia will see its own consequences if it doesn’t agree to negotiate on ending the war in Ukraine, including additional sanctions. 

“It should be clear to everyone that the United States has tools available to also impose costs on the Russian side of this equation,” Rubio said. “But we hope it doesn’t come to that. 

“What we’re hoping is that both sides realize that this is not a conflict that can end by military means,” he added. 

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On Friday, in a posting on the Truth Social platform, Trump threatened Russia with “large scale Banking Sanctions, Sanctions and Tariffs,” until a ceasefire and peace settlement are reached.  

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French President Macron meets Moldovan counterpart Sandu for talks

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French President Macron meets Moldovan counterpart Sandu for talks

Sandu warmly thanked the French President, adding Moldova was open for business, which will not just profit France but all EU member states.

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French President Emmanuel Macron met his Moldovan counterpart Maia Sandu at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Monday evening. 

Macron reiterated French support for Moldova in the context of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine as well as their accession bid to the European Union. 

Sandu told reporters that: “Russia breaks every promise. It pledged to withdraw its illegal troops from our territory by 2002. Never did. It cut off gas, violating its own supply contract.” 

“It imposes embargoes on Moldovan produce, ignoring trade agreements. It interfered in our elections, flouting basic bilateral principles. These aren’t isolated acts.” 

 She concluded by saying Moldova hopes to achieve EU membership by the end of the decade. ”EU accession is not just the destination. It is the path to a stronger country.” 

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Her arrival in Paris comes ahead of a Tuesday vote on a new €1.9 billion Reform and Growth Instrument for Moldova, to accelerate the country’s socio-economic reforms, strengthen its resilience and promote its integration into the EU through grants and low-interest loans.  

The European Parliament also said it will open an office in Moldova to further strengthen Parliament’s engagement in the Eastern Partnership region. 

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