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Turkey seeks extradition of gang leader from UAE

Turkey has asked the United Arab Emirates to extradite a convicted crime boss who fled prosecution and accused the allies of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of serious misdemeanors, state news agency reported on Wednesday.The justice ministry has asked the UAE to “temporarily arrest Sedat Peker for his eventual extradition to Turkey,” the Anadolu news agency reported.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Peker’s accusations against Erdogan’s allies – including a former prime minister, top officials and their relatives – ranged from corruption to drug trafficking.In June, an Istanbul prosecutor’s office said it launched an investigation into the murder of a Turkish Cypriot journalist 25 years ago, after Peker said the killing was ordered by a former Turkish minister.Peker, 49, rose to prominence in the 1990s as a gangland figure and was sentenced to 14 years in prison in 2007 for crimes including forming and leading a criminal gang.He has said in June that he is in Dubai, although Reuters was not been able to verify his whereabouts.President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, one of the people Peker has targeted so far, have strongly rejected the accusations.Read more:UAE, Turkey sign 13 agreements during Erdogan’s meeting with Mohammed bin ZayedTurkey launches probe into 1996 killing after gang leader’s claimsErdogan calls on UAE’s private sector to invest in Turkey
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Turkey seeks extradition of gang leader from UAE

UAE plans to buy 12 L-15 aircrafts from China

The UAE Ministry of Defense said it plans to buy 12 L-15 aircrafts from China, state news agency (WAM) reported on Wednesday.The ministry will sign a contract with China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation (CATIC) to purchase the aircrafts, with the option of buying 36 more aircrafts in the future, according to WAM.For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.Tareq Abdulraheem al-Hosani, chief executive officer of Tawazun Economic Council, said the deal comes within efforts to diversify armament resources and modernize the country’s air force and armed forces unit.“We have reached the final stages in negotiations with the Chinese [company], and a final agreement will be sealed soon,” Hosani said, adding that such diversification seeks to equip the UAE’s armed forces with the “best capabilities” to achieve their strategic goals.Earlier in February, the US State Department approved the potential sale of $30 million worth of spare and repair parts for its Homing All the Way Killer (HAWK) missile defense systems to the UAE.Read more:UAE’s lone nuclear plant ‘well protected’ against security threats: RegulatorUAE eyes more trade pacts to secure billions in investmentsUAE extends decision to stop all private drone activities, light sports aircrafts
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: UAE plans to buy 12 L-15 aircrafts from China

Russia vows ‘strong’ response to US ‘ineffective’ sanctions over Ukraine actions

Russia will give a “strong” response to US sanctions against Moscow over the latter’s Ukraine steps, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.“There should be no doubt - the sanctions will be given a strong response, not necessarily symmetrical, but verified and sensitive for the American side,” state news agency TASS cited the ministry as saying.US President Joe Biden announced on Tuesday the “first tranche” of sanctions against Russia for what he described as “the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.”For the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.This came after Russia’s parliament approved President Vladimir Putin’s request to use military force outside the country, formalizing the deployment of Russian troops to separatist regions in eastern Ukraine, a day after he recognized their independence.The Russian ministry said: “Despite the obvious futility of the efforts made over the years to hinder the development of our economy, the US is once again reflexively grasping at restrictive instruments that are ineffective and counterproductive from the point of view of American interests.”“Sanctions pressure is not capable of affecting our determination to firmly defend our interests,” the ministry added, describing the American sanctions as a stereotypical move “of a unipolar world with a false conviction that the US is still entitled and can impose its own rules of the world order on everyone.”Read more:EU unanimously agree new sanctions that will ‘hurt’ Russia: FranceParliament grants Putin request to use Russia’s military to back Ukraine separatistsBiden cuts Western financing for Russian sovereign debt in first tranche of sanctions
Source: Al Arabiya
Full Article: Russia vows ‘strong’ response to US ‘ineffective’ sanctions over Ukraine actions