Turkey approves economic sanctions against PKK supportersNovember 1, 2007 - 15:03 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A senior Turkish official says the Cabinet has approved economic sanctions against Kurdish rebels and their supporters.The measures could affect members of the autonomous Kurdish administration in northern Iraq. Ankara accuses rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, of launching attacks in southeastern Turkey from bases in Iraq. Meanwhile, the U.S. Defense Department says it is providing Ankara with the kind of intelligence on Kurdish rebels that could enable the Turkish military to take action against them. A Pentagon spokesman says the United States has been supplying actionable intelligence to Turkey, and has been providing "more and more" information as a result of recent developments. He says part of the effort to help Turkey fight rebels involves an order to U.S. troops in Iraq to detain anyone on a list of the 10 most wanted PKK members. In Baghdad Wednesday, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said the number of checkpoints in Iraq has been increased in an effort to cut the supply lines of the PKK. He also said his government is making intensive efforts to find eight Turkish soldiers kidnapped in a rebel ambush in southeastern Turkey last week. Separately, Turkish media reports say Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused the leader of Iraq's Kurdish region, Masoud Barzani, of aiding Kurdish rebels who are fighting Turkey, the VOA reports. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Armenian delegation participating in NATO PA session The delegation is headed by Andranik Kocharyan, the chairman of the standing committee on defense and security matters. Schengen visa cost won’t change for Armenia – diplomat The increase in the cost of a Schengen visa will not apply to citizens of Armenia, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson has said. Yeremyan Projects opens state-of-the-art dairy production plant Yeremyan Projects officially launched the Yeremyan Products state-of-the-art milk processing plant in Yerevan on May 24. Armenian PM’s helicopter makes emergency landing in Vanadzor The helicopter transporting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan made an emergency landing in Vanadzor. |