Turkey and France Ease Tensions, but Africa Rivalries Remain
Voice of America
ISTANBUL - Leaders of Turkey and France are pledging to ease tensions after months of trading insults, but tensions between them remain over their competing interests in Africa.
French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian declared Turkey and France are in what he described as "recovery period" after the French and Turkish President met on the sidelines of the NATO summit earlier this month and pledged to resolve their differences. French President Emmanuel Macron and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan had engaged in a war of words as the two leaders competed for international influence. Sinan Ulgen of the Istanbul-based Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies says there has been a diplomatic breakthrough but he voices caution. "We can talk about a reset with France, but it's a question about how deep that reset will go. This is part of a broader reset that Turkey has been trying in terms of its foreign relations with the West. However, none of the areas of disagreement with France have been resolved," said Ulgen.
Workers clean pavilion seats on the eve of the International Cricket Council Champions Trophy match between Pakistan and New Zealand at National Stadium in Karachi on Feb. 18, 2025. Pakistan's Babar Azam attends a practice session at National Stadium in Karachi on Feb. 16, 2025, ahead of his team's Champions Trophy cricket match against New Zealand. A Pakistani police commando stands guard outside the National Stadium in Karachi on Feb. 17, 2025. The International Cricket Council Champions Trophy begins on Feb. 19. Workers install a screen at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium ahead of the International Cricket Council Champions Trophy matches in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, on Feb. 17, 2025.
Vietnam's President Luong Cuong, Vietnam's communist party general secretary To Lam, Vietnam's PM Pham Minh Chinh and others attend the National Assembly's extraordinary session opening in Hanoi, Feb. 12, 2025.
Reporters stand in front of the Agostino Gemelli Polyclinic, in Rome, Feb. 18, 2025, where Pope Francis has been hospitalized to undergo some necessary diagnostic tests and to continue his ongoing treatment for bronchitis.
An Israeli army Merkava main battle tank is deployed by the concrete border wall at a position along Israel's northern border with Lebanon on Feb. 18, 2025.
FILE - A Philippines Navy ship is anchored before a multilateral naval exercise at Denpasar, in Indonesia's Bali island on Feb. 15, 2025. The Philippines has detected foreign attempts to access intelligence data.
Afghan children queue to receive food aid distributed by a private charity foundation, in Mazar-i-Sharif on Feb. 16, 2025. FILE - A person holds a bundle of Afghan afghani banknotes at a money exchange market, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sept. 4, 2021.
Rescuers work at the site of a residential building damaged during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in the town of Dolynska, in Kirovohrad region, Ukraine, Feb. 18, 2025.
FILE - A chimney is seen at Japan's Keihin Industrial Zone as Mount Fuji looms in the background on Jan. 24, 2022. Japan set fresh climate targets on Feb.18, 2025, pledging to slash greenhouse gas emissions by 60% in fiscal 2035 from 2013 levels, the environment ministry said.
An aerial view shows sections of the columns in the ancient city of Palmyra, Syria, Jan. 25, 2025. FILE - An aerial view shows a section of the ancient city of Palmyra, Syria, Jan. 25, 2025. FILE - Experts gather as they discuss the restoration process of the Crusader castle of Crac des Chevaliers, in Homs province, Syria, May 24, 2016. FILE - A makeshift camp of displaced Syrians is seen on Nov. 1, 2020, at Byzantine ruins in a region of northwest Syria called the Dead Cities.
French President Emmanuel Macron welcomes Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk before an informal summit of European leaders to discuss the situation in Ukraine and European security at The Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris on Feb. 17, 2025.
FILE - Missiles are launched from a U.S. military HIMARS system during joint military drills at a firing range in Shoalwater Bay, Australia, July 22, 2023. Taiwan reportedly is considering buying billions of dollars worth of weapons, including HIMARS, from the U.S.
President of Interim Regional Administration of Tigray Getachew Reda, center, and Chairman of Tigray People's Liberation Front Debretsion Gebremichael, left, shake hands with Former President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo at the AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa on Feb. 16, 2025.
Chinese believed to have been trafficked and trapped into working in online scam centers after they were rescued in Myawaddy district in eastern Myanmar, Feb. 17, 2025. In this photo released by Thailand's Provincial Electricity Authority, Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul shuts down electricity supplies to five locations in Thailand-Myanmar border at the Provincial Electricity Authority headquarters in Bangkok, Feb. 5, 2025. In this photo released by Royal Thai Army, more than 250 people from 20 nations who were reportedly rescued from alleged scam centers in Myanmar, as they crossed into Thailand's Tak province, Feb. 12, 2025.