Month: July 2018

After the devastation of World War Two, architects in Yugoslavia got to work helping to rebuild the country which straddled the Cold War divide between the East and West. The architecture reflects styles from both sides and the architects’ vision of the future. The Museum of Modern Art in New York examines their work in an exhibit called “Toward a Concrete Utopia.” Ardita Dunellari has the story.
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On August 1, when face veils are banned in Denmark, Sabina will not be leaving her niqab at home. Instead, she will be defying the law and taking to the street in protest.

In May, the Danish parliament banned the wearing of face veils in public, joining France and some other European countries to uphold what some politicians say are secular and democratic values.

But Sabina, 21, who is studying to be a teacher, has joined forces with other Muslim women who wear the veil to form Kvinder I Dialog (Women in Dialogue) to protest and raise awareness about why women should be allowed to express their identity in that way.

“I won’t take my niqab off. If I must take it off, I want to do it because it is a reflection of my own choice,” she said.

Like the other women interviewed for this article, Sabina did not wish to have her surname published for fear of harassment.

The niqab wearers who plan to protest on August 1 will be joined by non-niqab-wearing Muslim women and also non-Muslim Danes, most of whom plan to wear face coverings at the rally.

“Everybody wants to define what Danish values are,” said Meryem, 20, who was born in Denmark to Turkish parents and has been wearing the niqab since before meeting her husband, who supports her right to wear it but feels life could be easier without.

“I believe that you have to integrate yourself in society, that you should get an education and so forth. But I don’t think wearing a niqab means you can’t engage yourself in Danish values,” said Meryem, who has a place to study molecular medicine at Aarhus University.

Like Sabina, Meryem plans to defy the law, keep her niqab on and protest the ban.

Under the law, police will be able to instruct women to remove their veils or order them to leave public areas. Justice Minister Soren Pape Poulsen said officers would fine them and tell them to go home.

Fines will range from 1,000 Danish crowns ($160) for a first offense to 10,000 crowns for a fourth violation.

“I feel this law legitimizes acts of hatred but, on the other hand, I feel people have become more aware of what is going on. I get more smiles on the street and people are asking me more questions,” said Ayah, 37.

Mathias Vidas Olsen, who makes reproductions of Viking-age jewelry, is supporting the campaign by making special bracelets and giving the proceeds to Kvinder I Dialog.

“I’m not for or against the niqab,” the 29-year-old Copenhagen man said. “I’m for the right of the people to wear whatever they want whether they be a Muslim or a punk.

“I see this as the government reaching in to places they don’t belong and as a cheap hit on an already stigmatized group to score cheap political points,” he said.
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On August 1, when face veils are banned in Denmark, Sabina will not be leaving her niqab at home. Instead, she will be defying the law and taking to the street in protest.

In May, the Danish parliament banned the wearing of face veils in public, joining France and some other European countries to uphold what some politicians say are secular and democratic values.

But Sabina, 21, who is studying to be a teacher, has joined forces with other Muslim women who wear the veil to form Kvinder I Dialog (Women in Dialogue) to protest and raise awareness about why women should be allowed to express their identity in that way.

“I won’t take my niqab off. If I must take it off, I want to do it because it is a reflection of my own choice,” she said.

Like the other women interviewed for this article, Sabina did not wish to have her surname published for fear of harassment.

The niqab wearers who plan to protest on August 1 will be joined by non-niqab-wearing Muslim women and also non-Muslim Danes, most of whom plan to wear face coverings at the rally.

“Everybody wants to define what Danish values are,” said Meryem, 20, who was born in Denmark to Turkish parents and has been wearing the niqab since before meeting her husband, who supports her right to wear it but feels life could be easier without.

“I believe that you have to integrate yourself in society, that you should get an education and so forth. But I don’t think wearing a niqab means you can’t engage yourself in Danish values,” said Meryem, who has a place to study molecular medicine at Aarhus University.

Like Sabina, Meryem plans to defy the law, keep her niqab on and protest the ban.

Under the law, police will be able to instruct women to remove their veils or order them to leave public areas. Justice Minister Soren Pape Poulsen said officers would fine them and tell them to go home.

Fines will range from 1,000 Danish crowns ($160) for a first offense to 10,000 crowns for a fourth violation.

“I feel this law legitimizes acts of hatred but, on the other hand, I feel people have become more aware of what is going on. I get more smiles on the street and people are asking me more questions,” said Ayah, 37.

Mathias Vidas Olsen, who makes reproductions of Viking-age jewelry, is supporting the campaign by making special bracelets and giving the proceeds to Kvinder I Dialog.

“I’m not for or against the niqab,” the 29-year-old Copenhagen man said. “I’m for the right of the people to wear whatever they want whether they be a Muslim or a punk.

“I see this as the government reaching in to places they don’t belong and as a cheap hit on an already stigmatized group to score cheap political points,” he said.
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Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Monday he was organizing a conference to look for ways to stabilize Libya, a main departure point for migrants from North Africa trying to reach Europe.

“In agreement with President (Donald) Trump, I’m going to organize a conference on Libya,” Conte told reporters at the White House after meeting with the U.S. president.

“We would like to deal (with) and discuss all of the issues related to the Libyan people, involving all of the stakeholders, actors, protagonists in the whole of the Mediterranean,” said Conte, who took office last month promising a crackdown on immigration.

Italy has told its allies it wants to hold an international conference on Libya this autumn and Conte was eager to get Trump’s blessing for the gathering at their meeting on Monday.

Italy is competing with neighboring France over how best to deal with Libya, which has been wracked by violence for years.

Conte believes a conference in Rome, backed by the United States, will help Rome establish itself as the major interlocutor for Libya’s warring factions.

After their meeting, Conte said Trump had agreed Italy would become “a reference point in Europe and the main interlocutor for the main issues that need to be faced … with particular reference to Libya.”

“We are going to discuss economic aspects, but also social aspects: the need for protection of civil rights; the problem of constitutional process – of issuing and passing laws so as to enable Libya, in particular, to get to democratic elections in a condition of the utmost stability,” Conte said.
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Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Monday he was organizing a conference to look for ways to stabilize Libya, a main departure point for migrants from North Africa trying to reach Europe.

“In agreement with President (Donald) Trump, I’m going to organize a conference on Libya,” Conte told reporters at the White House after meeting with the U.S. president.

“We would like to deal (with) and discuss all of the issues related to the Libyan people, involving all of the stakeholders, actors, protagonists in the whole of the Mediterranean,” said Conte, who took office last month promising a crackdown on immigration.

Italy has told its allies it wants to hold an international conference on Libya this autumn and Conte was eager to get Trump’s blessing for the gathering at their meeting on Monday.

Italy is competing with neighboring France over how best to deal with Libya, which has been wracked by violence for years.

Conte believes a conference in Rome, backed by the United States, will help Rome establish itself as the major interlocutor for Libya’s warring factions.

After their meeting, Conte said Trump had agreed Italy would become “a reference point in Europe and the main interlocutor for the main issues that need to be faced … with particular reference to Libya.”

“We are going to discuss economic aspects, but also social aspects: the need for protection of civil rights; the problem of constitutional process – of issuing and passing laws so as to enable Libya, in particular, to get to democratic elections in a condition of the utmost stability,” Conte said.
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Spain aims to invest 30 million euros ($35.1 million) in an emergency plan to manage its new status as the main destination for seaborne migration from Africa, the government said.

During two months in office, Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has asserted his liberal credentials by offering to receive hundreds of migrants rescued in the Mediterranean, as the European Union struggles to agree on how to handle them.

The money will go towards covering the initial costs of managing arrivals on the beaches, from staff to hand out blankets and food to managing the process of identification and determining whether people qualify for asylum, a spokeswoman for the Prime Minister’s office said.

On Monday, Madrid opened a temporary reception center in the Andalusia region which is separated from Africa by the Strait of Gibraltar, just 14 km (nine miles) at its narrowest point.

Visiting the center, which has space for up to 700 people to stay around 4-5 days each once their identities have been processed by police, Labour Minister Magdalena Valerio said immigration was an “unstoppable phenomenon”.

“Migration policy needs to be shared, all European countries need to get involved,” she added.

Sanchez’s office said the previous government left Spain unprepared for the influx, which has totaled almost 24,000 so far this year, according to the United Nations refugee agency, almost as many as made the trip throughout all of 2017.

Meanwhile, Italy, long a regional flashpoint for boat migration, has seen almost 18,300 arrivals, and its anti-system government has barred migrant rescue ships from docking.

Sanchez’s political opponents including the hard-line new leader of the conservative People’s Party (PP) have warned against creating a “pull factor” for migrants seeking a better life in Europe.

“Rather than a pull factor, we could talk about a lack of foresight in the last years of the previous government, which did nothing about increasing arrivals, and obliged this government to take urgent steps,” Sanchez’s office said in a statement. 

($1 = 0.8552 euros)
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Spain aims to invest 30 million euros ($35.1 million) in an emergency plan to manage its new status as the main destination for seaborne migration from Africa, the government said.

During two months in office, Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has asserted his liberal credentials by offering to receive hundreds of migrants rescued in the Mediterranean, as the European Union struggles to agree on how to handle them.

The money will go towards covering the initial costs of managing arrivals on the beaches, from staff to hand out blankets and food to managing the process of identification and determining whether people qualify for asylum, a spokeswoman for the Prime Minister’s office said.

On Monday, Madrid opened a temporary reception center in the Andalusia region which is separated from Africa by the Strait of Gibraltar, just 14 km (nine miles) at its narrowest point.

Visiting the center, which has space for up to 700 people to stay around 4-5 days each once their identities have been processed by police, Labour Minister Magdalena Valerio said immigration was an “unstoppable phenomenon”.

“Migration policy needs to be shared, all European countries need to get involved,” she added.

Sanchez’s office said the previous government left Spain unprepared for the influx, which has totaled almost 24,000 so far this year, according to the United Nations refugee agency, almost as many as made the trip throughout all of 2017.

Meanwhile, Italy, long a regional flashpoint for boat migration, has seen almost 18,300 arrivals, and its anti-system government has barred migrant rescue ships from docking.

Sanchez’s political opponents including the hard-line new leader of the conservative People’s Party (PP) have warned against creating a “pull factor” for migrants seeking a better life in Europe.

“Rather than a pull factor, we could talk about a lack of foresight in the last years of the previous government, which did nothing about increasing arrivals, and obliged this government to take urgent steps,” Sanchez’s office said in a statement. 

($1 = 0.8552 euros)
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Turkish steel makers are looking to expand in West Africa and other emerging markets in response to tariffs and planned quotas which threaten their sales to the United States and the European Union, a senior sector official said.

Namik Ekinci, board chairman for the Turkish Steel Exporters Association (TSEA), told Reuters that Turkey was looking to boost its trade with West Africa and sub-Saharan countries, where there is demand for the less capital-intensive steel products that Turkey mainly exports.

“Looking at the product types these countries consume, it’s products that we have the capability to produce like rebar and pipes. Therefore, these countries are markets where we have a chance,” Ekinci said.

“This is why the market we are working with in the first stage is West Africa,” he said, adding that the Caribbean, South America and Southeast Asia were the next targets.

According to TSEA data, more capital-intensive products, used in the automotive and white goods sectors, account for a quarter of Turkey’s steel production, while products like rebar and pipes account for 53 percent.

The world’s eighth biggest steel producer, Turkey ranks second in global exports of rebar, figures from the World Steel Association show.

In a move that ignited fears of a global trade war, U.S. President Donald Trump in March imposed a 25 percent tariff on steel imports and a 10 percent tariff on aluminum imports, leading to a 56 percent slump in Turkey’s exports to the United States between January and May.

In early July European Union countries also voted in favor of a combination of quota and tariffs to prevent a surge of steel imports into the bloc that could follow the U.S. levies.

In order to tackle the U.S. tariffs and protectionist measures, Ekinci said Turkey wanted to increase its effectiveness in other emerging markets “as the United States and the European Union adopt measures to make trade harder.”

He said a union of Turkish exporters would jointly start a new firm to penetrate the target markets through time charter shipments, aiming to increase Turkey’s market share in West Africa from below 5 percent to 15 percent by cutting shipping costs.

The project is expected to cut transport costs of steel exported to West Africa to around $30 per tonne, from nearly $100, making it significantly more competitive, Ekinci said.
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Turkish steel makers are looking to expand in West Africa and other emerging markets in response to tariffs and planned quotas which threaten their sales to the United States and the European Union, a senior sector official said.

Namik Ekinci, board chairman for the Turkish Steel Exporters Association (TSEA), told Reuters that Turkey was looking to boost its trade with West Africa and sub-Saharan countries, where there is demand for the less capital-intensive steel products that Turkey mainly exports.

“Looking at the product types these countries consume, it’s products that we have the capability to produce like rebar and pipes. Therefore, these countries are markets where we have a chance,” Ekinci said.

“This is why the market we are working with in the first stage is West Africa,” he said, adding that the Caribbean, South America and Southeast Asia were the next targets.

According to TSEA data, more capital-intensive products, used in the automotive and white goods sectors, account for a quarter of Turkey’s steel production, while products like rebar and pipes account for 53 percent.

The world’s eighth biggest steel producer, Turkey ranks second in global exports of rebar, figures from the World Steel Association show.

In a move that ignited fears of a global trade war, U.S. President Donald Trump in March imposed a 25 percent tariff on steel imports and a 10 percent tariff on aluminum imports, leading to a 56 percent slump in Turkey’s exports to the United States between January and May.

In early July European Union countries also voted in favor of a combination of quota and tariffs to prevent a surge of steel imports into the bloc that could follow the U.S. levies.

In order to tackle the U.S. tariffs and protectionist measures, Ekinci said Turkey wanted to increase its effectiveness in other emerging markets “as the United States and the European Union adopt measures to make trade harder.”

He said a union of Turkish exporters would jointly start a new firm to penetrate the target markets through time charter shipments, aiming to increase Turkey’s market share in West Africa from below 5 percent to 15 percent by cutting shipping costs.

The project is expected to cut transport costs of steel exported to West Africa to around $30 per tonne, from nearly $100, making it significantly more competitive, Ekinci said.
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Deepening rifts between Turkey and the United States are fueling speculation Turkey is being given further impetus to strengthen ties with nearby Russia.

Senior Turkish officials met with their Russian and Iranian counterparts Monday in Russia’s Sochi sea resort as part of ongoing cooperation among the countries over resolving the Syrian civil war.

“We can go our own way,” Turkish media Sunday quoted President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as saying. “The U.S. could lose a loyal and valuable ally,” he added in response to U.S. threats.

In the past week, Turkish-U.S. tensions have rapidly escalated with President Donald Trump warning of “severe sanctions” if Turkey does not release an American pastor, Andrew Brunson, from detention.

Brunson is under house arrest on terrorism charges which Washington has dismissed as “baseless.” Ankara says the issue is a matter for the courts.

Meanwhile, Russia is successfully courting Turkey.

“This is the coziest relations have been in the [Turkish] republic’s history,” said former senior Turkish diplomat Aydin Selcen, who served in Washington and Middle East. The two countries have rapidly deepened relations in cooperation over the Syrian civil war and trade.

Turkey’s decision to purchase S-400 missiles from Russia is exacerbating concerns among Ankara’s Western allies, with Washington warning the missiles threaten to compromise NATO defense systems. Turkey and the U.S. are NATO allies.

Allies concerned

Analysts suggest Washington’s increasingly hard-line approach toward Ankara over the Brunson case can in part be explained by broader concerns about Turkey’s allegiance to its Western allies. Trump’s threat of sanctions could be an opportunity for Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

“I wouldn’t rule out Putin selling Erdogan some sort of insurance policy against American wrath,” political analyst Atilla Yesilada of Global Source Partners said. “But Putin has everything that Turkey needs, except money. And Turkey is in desperate need of foreign funding. Only the West can provide those loans.”

The U.S. Congress, aware of the Turkish economy’s heavy dependence on overseas borrowing, is threatening measures to restrict Turkey’s ability to borrow money.

Experts also question whether it is in Putin’s interest to further deepen relations with Ankara.

“I don’t think Moscow wants Turkey closer than this,” Selcen said. “It’s enough for them to play their game to keep NATO weak, to keep Turkey with one foot in the West and one foot in the East because it’s not in President Putin’s interest to have Turkey dependent like Belarus. Let’s remember the Russian economy is smaller than California. Russia can’t carry Turkey’s burden. It can’t even carry Syria.”

Turkey and Russia are historically regional rivals.

“Turkey has always balanced its relations between West and East,” says international relations professor Huseyin Bagci of Ankara’s Middle East Technical University. “Turkey knows the limitation of cooperation with Russia.”

Syria a catalyst

An Erdogan adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity, last month stressed Ankara remained committed to its Western alliances and relations with Russia are based on the necessity of resolving the Syrian civil war and trade.

Ankara’s cooperation with Moscow over Syria faces growing strains. Turkish officials accuse Russia of reneging on an agreement to create de-escalation zones where a cease-fire would protect Syrian rebels. The zones were established as part of the “Astana Process” in which Iran, Turkey, and Russia cooperate to resolve the Syrian war.

Much to Ankara’s anger, Syrian regime forces backed by Russian airpower are gradually overrunning the de-escalation zones. Erdogan has vowed to protect the last main zone in Idlib, on Turkey’s border. Monday’s Sochi meeting of Turkish, Iranian and Russian officials is expected to focus on the future of the Idlib enclave.

The Helsinki summit between Putin and Trump earlier in July could further strain Turkish-Russian ties.

“In Helsinki, there was a four-hour meeting. There was substance; there appears already the grounds of a final political agreement over Syria,” former Turkish diplomat Selcen said.

“President Trump is, more than President [Barack] Obama, ready to hand over Syria to President [Bashar] Assad, once IS is defeated,” Selcen said. He said it shows that “Moscow and [the] U.S. can agree on Syria, which could mean Turkey can be frozen out, as Turkey cannot resist Moscow and [Washington] DC over Syria.”
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Deepening rifts between Turkey and the United States are fueling speculation Turkey is being given further impetus to strengthen ties with nearby Russia.

Senior Turkish officials met with their Russian and Iranian counterparts Monday in Russia’s Sochi sea resort as part of ongoing cooperation among the countries over resolving the Syrian civil war.

“We can go our own way,” Turkish media Sunday quoted President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as saying. “The U.S. could lose a loyal and valuable ally,” he added in response to U.S. threats.

In the past week, Turkish-U.S. tensions have rapidly escalated with President Donald Trump warning of “severe sanctions” if Turkey does not release an American pastor, Andrew Brunson, from detention.

Brunson is under house arrest on terrorism charges which Washington has dismissed as “baseless.” Ankara says the issue is a matter for the courts.

Meanwhile, Russia is successfully courting Turkey.

“This is the coziest relations have been in the [Turkish] republic’s history,” said former senior Turkish diplomat Aydin Selcen, who served in Washington and Middle East. The two countries have rapidly deepened relations in cooperation over the Syrian civil war and trade.

Turkey’s decision to purchase S-400 missiles from Russia is exacerbating concerns among Ankara’s Western allies, with Washington warning the missiles threaten to compromise NATO defense systems. Turkey and the U.S. are NATO allies.

Allies concerned

Analysts suggest Washington’s increasingly hard-line approach toward Ankara over the Brunson case can in part be explained by broader concerns about Turkey’s allegiance to its Western allies. Trump’s threat of sanctions could be an opportunity for Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

“I wouldn’t rule out Putin selling Erdogan some sort of insurance policy against American wrath,” political analyst Atilla Yesilada of Global Source Partners said. “But Putin has everything that Turkey needs, except money. And Turkey is in desperate need of foreign funding. Only the West can provide those loans.”

The U.S. Congress, aware of the Turkish economy’s heavy dependence on overseas borrowing, is threatening measures to restrict Turkey’s ability to borrow money.

Experts also question whether it is in Putin’s interest to further deepen relations with Ankara.

“I don’t think Moscow wants Turkey closer than this,” Selcen said. “It’s enough for them to play their game to keep NATO weak, to keep Turkey with one foot in the West and one foot in the East because it’s not in President Putin’s interest to have Turkey dependent like Belarus. Let’s remember the Russian economy is smaller than California. Russia can’t carry Turkey’s burden. It can’t even carry Syria.”

Turkey and Russia are historically regional rivals.

“Turkey has always balanced its relations between West and East,” says international relations professor Huseyin Bagci of Ankara’s Middle East Technical University. “Turkey knows the limitation of cooperation with Russia.”

Syria a catalyst

An Erdogan adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity, last month stressed Ankara remained committed to its Western alliances and relations with Russia are based on the necessity of resolving the Syrian civil war and trade.

Ankara’s cooperation with Moscow over Syria faces growing strains. Turkish officials accuse Russia of reneging on an agreement to create de-escalation zones where a cease-fire would protect Syrian rebels. The zones were established as part of the “Astana Process” in which Iran, Turkey, and Russia cooperate to resolve the Syrian war.

Much to Ankara’s anger, Syrian regime forces backed by Russian airpower are gradually overrunning the de-escalation zones. Erdogan has vowed to protect the last main zone in Idlib, on Turkey’s border. Monday’s Sochi meeting of Turkish, Iranian and Russian officials is expected to focus on the future of the Idlib enclave.

The Helsinki summit between Putin and Trump earlier in July could further strain Turkish-Russian ties.

“In Helsinki, there was a four-hour meeting. There was substance; there appears already the grounds of a final political agreement over Syria,” former Turkish diplomat Selcen said.

“President Trump is, more than President [Barack] Obama, ready to hand over Syria to President [Bashar] Assad, once IS is defeated,” Selcen said. He said it shows that “Moscow and [the] U.S. can agree on Syria, which could mean Turkey can be frozen out, as Turkey cannot resist Moscow and [Washington] DC over Syria.”
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