Tag: Turkiye

Turkish Partnership and Prospects Strengthened

Migrant vessel sinks off Turkey

Turkish investors eye ports on other side of the Aegean Sea

Initially for a 180 day period On 11 June 2012 it was announced by the US Department of State that India, Malaysia, South Korea, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Turkey and Taiwan have been exempted for a period of 180 days from the provisions of section 1245(d)(1) of the National Defence Authorization Act of 2012 ("NDAA"). The 180 day exemption is renewable upon review. These seven countries are not exempted from any other US sanctions against Iran, other than those in Sec. 1245(d)(1) of the NDAA for 2012.Section 1245 of the NDAA provides:1. For the blocking of all assets found within US jurisdiction belonging to any Iranian financial institution.2. All private financial institutions (US or foreign) that knowingly conduct or facilitate any significant transactions with the Central Bank of Iran, or with any Iranian financial institution which has been designated by the US, are subject to being sanctioned by the U.S. The sanction provided for in the NDAA is that the foreign financial institution will be prohibited from opening or maintaining correspondent accounts with US financial institutions. In other words, they will be shut out of the U.S. financial system.3. Transactions involving the sale of food, medicine or medical devices to ...

The Giresun is the Turkish flagship of Standing NATO Maritime Group The Turkish Navy vessel TCG Giresun has detained 14 Somali pirates and rescued seven Yemeni sailors who were being held hostage aboard their fishing dhow.The Giresun (F-491) intercepted the pirates 190 nautical miles off the coast of Oman on Friday morning after the vessel, towing a skiff, was spotted by the Giresun's S-70B Sea Hawk helicopter.Turkish commandoes stormed the Yemeni fishing vessel and seized nine AK-47 assault rifles, one RPG-7 rocket launcher, three RPG-7 warheads, ammunition and other equipment, including extra fuel barrels, ladders and communication and navigation devices, according to the Turkish Navy.Turkey has since 2009 contributed to patrolling the pirate-infested waters off Somalia. The Giresun is the Turkish flagship of Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG 2) Immediate Reaction Force, which is conducting Operation Ocean Shield. Other SNMG 2 ships include the HDMS Absalon (Denmark); ITS Grecale (Italy); RFA Fort Victoria (United Kingdom); USS Dewert (United States) and USS Carney (United States). SNMG 2 alternates with SNMG 1 every six months for Ocean Shield.The Standing NATO Maritime Group vessels (including their helicopters) are permanently available to NATO to perform different tasks ranging from participating in exercises to ...

Twelve seafarers have been detained from two Turkish ships Twelve seafarers have been detained from two Turkish commercial ships that stopped at a Black Sea port in the breakaway region of Abkhazia without official Georgian approval, border guards said.The twelve Turkish citizens could face fines or prison sentences of up to five years. Abkhazia broke free from Georgian control in the 1990s, but its independence is recognized only by Russia and a handful of other countries. Under Georgian law, international vessels are required to pass customs in Georgia and get official approval to enter Abkhazia.The border guard service said April 28 that the seafarers were detained on April 26 when they arrived in the Georgian port of Poti. The service said the two ships had stopped in Sukhumi, the capital of Abkhazia, earlier this yearSource: Maritime Connector

To search for natural gas and oil Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yıldız said that Turkey will build its own seismic ship to search for natural gas and oil."A growing and developing Turkey cannot have a stagnant energy sector. All areas of Turkey are growing, therefore we will conduct our exploration activities with the latest technology," Yıldız said at a ceremony organized by the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries.A deal was signed between the General Directorate of Mineral Research Exploration (MTA), the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries and the contractor that will build the ship.The ship will be built at the Tuzla shipyard in northwestern Turkey with the support of local industry, said Yıldız. The ship will be equipped with the latest technology and will be used for two-dimensional and three-dimensional seismic exploration.According to Yılıdız, the ship will cost roughly 100 million euros and will be delivered to the MTA in 2014. The ship will be financed by the Energy and Natural Resources Ministry with mediation from the Undersecretariat of the Defense Industries as it is expert in shipbuilding commissions.When asked by reporters at the ceremony what will be the name of the ship, Yıldız said the ship currently does not have a ...

Antigua and Barbuda-flagged 'Atlantic Cruiser' to be searched Turkey has intercepted an Antigua and Barbuda flagged vessel suspected of carrying weapons and ammunition to Syria in the Mediterranean, a diplomatic source told AFP on Wednesday."We received information that the vessel has a cargo of arms and ammunition headed for Syria," the source said on condition of anonymity, adding that Turkish authorities would search the vessel later in the day.The "Atlantic Cruiser" belongs to a German company, the source also noted.Amid Damascus' violent crackdown on unrest, Turkey imposed sanctions against its neighbour -- including interception of arms shipment to the country by air, land and sea.Throughout last year, Turkey intercepted several ships and trucks suspected of carrying weapons into Syria through Turkish territory.Source: AFP

Next generation port addresses congestion in Izmir city port Executives from Petkim Petrokimya Holding A.Ş. ("Petkim"), Petlim Limancılık A.Ş. ("Petlim") which is 100% owned by Petkim and APM Terminals signed a Heads of Terms agreement which outlines key terms of a definitive agreement to be negotiated and signed between Petkim, Petlim and a to be incorporated Turkish affiliate of APM Terminals for the long-term operation of Petkim Port, located in Aliağa, near the city of Izmir on the Aegean Coast of Turkey.The contract negotiations are still ongoing and further developments will be made public upon completion.Welcome APM Terminals and their vast expertise in global terminal operationsSOCAR President Rövnag Abdullayev said "We announced our vision for the Petkim peninsula as a Refinery-Petrochemicals-Energy-Logistics integration. A historic groundbreaking ceremony for the STAR refinery was held on 25 October 2011. We continue our investment projects to produce new petrochemical products and high valueadded products within Petkim. In order to meet the growing future needs of refinery and our other investments, we keep going on our power production projects.Thereby we will mostly have finished our vertical integration in Petkim Peninsula by 2015. We have taken strategic steps to execute our vision for Petkim Port as ...

Information provided by the West of Engalnd P&I Club The West of England P&I Club continues to encounter instances of vessels being fined in Turkish waters for pollution by substances other than oil. Section 8 of the Turkish Environmental Code 1983 states (in part) that:"It is prohibited, to introduce into, store in, transport to or remove from the receptor area any discharge or waste in such a way as to inflict damage on the environment or in a way directly or indirectly in contradiction with the standards and methods specified in the pertinent regulations, or to engage in similar activities".This provision is widely interpreted and rigorously enforced, to the extent that vessels have even been fined for pumping out clean ballast water. Ships at anchor off Istanbul are monitored particularly closely.Fines are imposed in accordance with a published tariff, which is revised annually. The amount of the fine is determined by the size of the vessel and the type of pollutant, rather than the quantity of pollutant. In almost all cases the fine must be paid in cash. The amount may be reduced by 25% if either settled immediately, prior to the vessel sailing or within a maximum of 30 ...