Democrats are zeroing in on new information revealed in the testimony of acting Ukraine ambassador Bill Taylor, who claimed one of his staffers overheard a cell phone conversation between European Union ambassador Gordon Sondland and President Trump.
President Trump met with his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan at the White House on Wednesday amid Congress’ impeachment efforts. During bilateral talks with Erdogan, the president stressed that Turkey has been a crucial U.S. ally for years and cited the importance of economic relations between the two countries.
The Trump administration recently gave an update on the current status of U.S. military actions in Syria. On Sunday, the chairman of joint chiefs of staff said less than 1,000 U.S. troops will remain in Syria to keep the pressure on ISIS.
The president’s National Security Adviser is saying Turkey’s purchase of Russian missiles will be addressed when President Tayyip Erdogan visits the White House this week. O’Brien also announced that the U.S. will continue to stand up to China in the South China Sea despite a possible trade deal.
Germany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Maas is urging Iran to draw back its nuclear activities. While speaking in Budapest Monday, Maas said the Ayatollah regime must go back to complying with the 2015 nuclear deal and engage in talks with world powers to resolve disagreements.
Captured ISIS soldiers may be heading back to their home countries soon. Turkey announced Saturday it will not continue to deal with the ISIS prisoners by itself and announced its intention to send the captured militants back to their countries.
Israeli military officials say they are expecting a possible aerial attack by Iranian forces. The country put its air defense systems on alert Thursday amid intelligence reports that either Iran or its terror proxies could attempt an attack.
Turkey is claiming it has arrested more than 100 militants affiliated with the Islamic State. Turkish police announced Wednesday that the ISIS-linked militants were arrested over the past few days in 26 raids across 21 provinces.
Turkish authorities reportedly rounded up 20 foreign nationals who have suspected ties to ISIS. The dawn raids were carried out Monday morning in the capital of Ankara. Authorities say the suspects are in Turkey illegally and are now facing deportation.