Turkey

Speaking to Slovak news agency TASR on December 15h, President Milos Zeman said that he was "extremely disappointed that the summer negotiations between Greece and creditors did not ultimately lead to Greece’s exit from the euro area, although it looked quite possible." Greece had an immediate response: it recalled its ambassador to Prague. 

Britain is set to deploy additional troops to the fight in Afghanistan after a suicide bomber on a motorbike killed six US troops near Bagram. The Taliban advance in Helmand underscores the country's worsening security situation and suggests that in relatively short order, Afghanistan will once again become a key battleground in what has become a multi-state regional proxy war.

Despite every effort by The Fed to convince the world that everything is awesome, it's not. From China growth risks to concerns about tightening financial conditions, Goldman warns so-called 'grey swan' fears are rising with Brexit, Trumpe elected, widening terrorist threats, and increased protectionism the most impactful.

The basic policy-difference on Syria has been between U.S. President Barack Obama’s insistence that Syria’s legal President must be ousted before any peace-process starts, versus Russian President Vladimir Putin’s insistence that no foreign power possesses the right to determine whom the leader of Syria or any other country will or won’t be - only the residents there do, via free and fair democratic elections. Putin proposes an internationally monitored and verified election in Syria to determine the identity of Syria’s President; Obama has rejected that proposal - until now.

“Europe didn’t let us fly; Turkey didn’t let us fly, but we showed that even is such conditions we’re capable of coping with the task using airfields on the Russian territory."

In the wake of a Security Council resolution on Syria that failed to consider the fate of Bashar al-Assad, a belligerent Turkey is fuming mad. In comments made from Istanbul on Saturday, PM Ahmet Davutoglu said the UN's stance "lacks realistic perspective." He also said Turkish troops will remain in Iraq until Mosul is "freed" from ISIS. Translation: Turkish boots will be on Iraqi ground for the foreseeable future.

The announcement of the restoration of Israel-Turkish relations should be seen in the context of Turkey having nowhere else to go.

"Turkey and Qatar face common problems and we are both very concerned about developments in the region and uncertain policies of other countries. We confront common enemies. At this critical time for the Middle East cooperation between us is vital."

The evidence continues to pile up implicating NATO's own Turkey in Islamic State's lucrative oil trade but the UN doesn't seem to care despite bold rhetoric from the Security Council and empty promises to "cut off" terrorist funding and access to the international financial system.

On Friday we get still more evidence that the West is begrudgingly coming to terms with the fact that Assad will be sticking around for the foreseeable future in Syria, as Bild (citing anonymous sources) says German spies have been "cooperating" with Assad for "some time" and are set to establish an intelligence cell in Damascus.

It was recently written in the Washington Post that many Shia Iraqis harbor the conspiratorial belief the US created the Islamic State to destroy Iraq.  Conspiracy theory becomes conspiracy fact. 

Eren Erdem, the Turkish opposition lawmaker who says ISIS obtained deadly sarin gas from Turkey and who also claims to have proof of Erdogan's role in Islamic State's lucrative oil smuggling business is now under investigation for treason. Just another day in Erdogan's thriving, NATO-backed democracy. 

"The Vice President reaffirmed the United States' commitment to Iraqi sovereignty and territorial integrity and called on Turkey to do the same by withdrawing any military forces from Iraqi territory that have not been authorized by the Iraqi government."