Poland’s Vistula River falls to historic low amid drought and heat
Poland’s iconic Vistula River has dropped to historic lows, as severe drought and scorching heat grip the country....
Turkey has reduced its planned $23 billion acquisition of an F-16 fighter jet package from the United States, scrapping the purchase of 79 modernisation kits for its existing fleet, Defence Minister Yasar Guler said late on Tuesday.
Turkey has reduced its planned $23 billion acquisition of an F-16 fighter jet package from the United States, scrapping the purchase of 79 modernisation kits for its existing fleet, Defence Minister Yasar Guler said late on Tuesday.
NATO member Turkey earlier this year secured a deal to procure 40 F-16 fighter jets and 79 modernisation kits for its existing F-16s from the United States, after a long-delayed process.
"An initial payment has been made for the procurement of F-16 Block-70. A payment of $1.4 billion has been made. With this, we will buy 40 F-16 Block-70 Viper and we were going to buy 79 modernisation kits," Guler told a parliamentary hearing.
"We gave up on this 79. This is why we gave up: Our Turkish Aerospace Industries (TUSAS) facilities are capable of carrying out this modernisation on their own, so we deferred to them," he said.
The sale of the 40 new Lockheed Martin LMT.N F-16 jets and ammunition for them will cost Turkey some $7 billion, Guler added.
Turkey placed its order in October 2021, two years after the United States kicked the country out of the fifth-generation F-35 fighter jet program over its procurement of a Russian missile defence system.
Turkey wants to re-join the F-35 programme and buy 40 new F-35 jets, Guler also said.
Turkey is one of the largest operators of F-16s, with its fleet made up of more than 200 older Block 30, 40 and 50 models.
Ankara is also interested in buying Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets, built by a consortium of Germany, Britain, Italy and Spain.
The European Commission is set to propose allowing carbon credits from other countries to count towards the EU’s 2040 climate target, according to a leaked internal document.
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck off Japan’s Tokara Islands on Wednesday, with no tsunami warning issued but residents advised to remain vigilant.
The United States has rescinded licensing restrictions on ethane exports to China, allowing shipments to resume after a temporary halt and signalling progress in efforts to ease recent trade tensions.
Italy plans to grant approximately 500,000 work visas to non-EU nationals between 2026 and 2028, as announced in a cabinet statement. The initiative aims to address labor shortages by expanding legal immigration pathways
Following a deadly glacier collapse in Blatten, near the Swiss Alpine village of Kandersteg, the town is on high alert as melting permafrost and shifting rock threaten another potential disaster after it was buried a month ago.
The UK has re-established diplomatic relations with Syria, marking a major shift in its foreign policy following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime eight months ago.
Poland’s iconic Vistula River has dropped to historic lows, as severe drought and scorching heat grip the country.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned Russia’s recent large-scale drone and missile attacks on Ukraine, calling them the biggest since the war began over three years ago.
Russian air defences intercepted four Ukrainian drones targeting Moscow on Saturday, prompting brief flight suspensions at major airports in the capital and other cities.
Ukraine’s top military commander, Oleksandr Syrskyi, warned on Saturday of a possible new Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region. The area in northeastern Ukraine has seen heavy fighting since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.
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