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Turkey Knows 'where All Syria Missiles Located'

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said in remarks published Wednesday that Ankara

knows the "exact location" of hundreds of ground missiles belonging to the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

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Three Dead after Freighter Sinks in Istanbul Storm

A cargo ship with 12 crew on board and a rescue boat sent to the scene sank in a thunderstorm in the Black Sea off Turkey on Tuesday, the transport minister said, adding that three people had perished in the disaster.

Ten people were still missing, Transport Minister Binali Yilirim told the NTV news channel, while four people were rescued from the cargo ship.

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NATO Approves Turkey Request for Syria Border Missiles

NATO on Tuesday agreed to deploy Patriot missiles along the border of member state Turkey as requested by Ankara to help it defend its territory against threats from Syria.

"NATO has agreed to augment Turkey's air defense capabilities in order to defend the population and territory of Turkey and to contribute to the de-escalation of the crisis along the alliance's border," a statement said.

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Iraq Bars Turkey Minister's Plane from Kurd North

Iraq on Tuesday barred Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz's plane from landing in Arbil, capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region, in the latest sign of worsening ties between the once-close neighbors.

The incident highlighted chilly ties between Baghdad and Ankara, in part due to issues related to Iraqi Kurdistan, and rows between the Iraqi federal government and the Kurds over energy contracts and disputed territory.

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Putin Says Russia, Turkey Fail to Agree on Syria

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday warned Turkey that the NATO deployment of Patriot missiles along its border with Syria could exacerbate tensions.

He met with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in an Istanbul summit that failed to yield a common response to Syria's conflict.

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U.S.: Deploying Patriots on Turkey's Border with Syria to Take Some Weeks

Even if NATO foreign ministers approve Turkey's request to deploy Patriot missiles on the border with Syria as expected, it will still take some weeks to get them in place, a top U.S. official said Monday.

The United States was "hopeful that NATO will be in a position to respond positively and agree to help Turkey bolster its air defences," a senior State Department official said.

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Mansour Advocates Dialogue as Only Solution to Syrian Crisis

Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour has said the Syrian war has "negative ramifications" for the region but advocated dialogue as the only solution to the crisis.

"There should not be any external military or any other kind of intervention," said Mansour at a one-day summit in Istanbul on Saturday.

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Turkey Calls for Independent Palestinian State

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu called Saturday for an "independent Palestinian state" and urged the international community not to allow Israel to undermine peace efforts in the Middle East.

Davutoglu, speaking at the opening of the Turkish-Arab Forum in Istanbul, welcomed the upgrading of the Palestinians' status at the United Nations as a "significant step."

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Moscow Ready to Rise above Syria Discord with Turkey

Russia said Friday it was willing to "set aside differences" with Turkey ahead of talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish officials that will focus on Syria.

"Turkey and Russia have clearly different positions on several questions, notably the Middle East, but these must be put aside when Mr. Putin holds talks in Istanbul," Russian Ambassador Vladimir Ivanovsky told reporters.

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Report: NATO Surveying Possible Missile Sites in Turkey

NATO experts on Wednesday began a survey of sites that would serve as suitable locations for the deployment of Patriot missiles along the border with its war-torn neighbor Syria, the state-run Anatolia news agency reported.

Turkey last week asked NATO partners to deploy the surface-to-air missiles along its frontier with Syria after a series of cross-border shellings, including an attack that left five civilians dead.

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