Turkey

Defense ministers of 26 member-states of NATO, including the US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov and representatives of the European Union, will gather for informal meeting in Portoroz, Slovenia, on September 28-29.

NATO Secretary General Jaap De Hoop Scheffer will chair the meeting. Among those expected to attend is EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana. NATO-Russia Council will hold a meeting on Friday.

NATO and Russia will discuss a wide range of issues, such as situation and perspectives of co-operation in the fight against global terrorism, co-operation in missile defense area, halt to proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and boosting nuclear safety.

Swapping tried and trusted life at home for pastures new can have its difficulties but it’s proving a rewarding experience for residents of the UK from Southeast European origin.

The largest population from the region are the Turkish, who have managed to settle in areas all over England, especially in the Turkish enclaves of north London in districts such as Stoke Newington and Haringey.

The foreign ministry welcomed Washington's appointment of retired Air Force General Joseph Ralston as special co-ordinator for the fight against the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) .The ministry described it as an important opportunity for co-ordinating the efforts of Turkey, the US and Iraq towards the elimination of the PKK. Ralston is expected to visit Ankara for talks next week. Also Wednesday, security forces in southeast Turkey seized 74kg of the plastic explosives often used by Kurdish rebels. The explosives, along with 15 rocket-launchers, reportedly came across the border from northern Iraq.