ANKARA
Main stories The Anadolu Agency's English News Desk to cover Thursday, Feb. 19, 2015:
TURKEY
ANKARA - President Erdogan to receive Barzani, prime minister of Kurdish regional government; Bob Corker, U.S. senate foreign relations committee chairman, and Hashim Thaci, Kosovo's foreign minister and deputy prime minister.
ANKARA - Prime Minister Davutoglu to meet Nechirvan Barzani in Ankara.
ANKARA - Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu to hold joint press conference with Kosovan counterpart Hashim Thaci.
Cavusoglu also to meet Michael Turner, member of U.S. senate armed services committee and Bob Corker, U.S. senate foreign relations committee chairman.
ANKARA - Debate in the Turkish parliament on a government-backed security bill to start.
ISTANBUL - Interview with Indira Kaljo, Bosnian female basketball player who has spoken out in support of sport's governing body's decision to allow religious head coverings in some competitions on trial basis.
UNITED STATES
WASHINGTON, D.C.- White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism; opening remarks by Secretary Kerry, remarks by President Obama and closing remarks by National Security Adviser Ambassador Rice.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Secretary Kerry meets Arab League Secretary-General Elaraby and Egyptian Foreign Minister Shoukry at State Department.
EUROPE
LATVIA
RIGA - Second (last) round of informal meeting of European Union defense ministers in Riga, Latvia, to take place.
GREECE
Greece balancing on the edge of crisis
ATHENS (AA) - As the European Central Bank makes a one-week emergency loan to Greek banks, the country has staved off a banking crisis for the time being, but default looms if no agreement is made with the country's creditors.
FRANCE
PARIS - French parliament to hold debate followed by vote on motion of no confidence over government's use of constitutional process to force through controversial economic reform package. If vote succeeds, government would be forced to resign.
SPECIAL REPORT
- Jews of France indecisive over immigrating to Israel
By Hajer M’tiri
SE ASIA-PACIFIC
THAILAND
BANGKOK - Thai attorney general formally presses criminal charges against former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra over loss-ridden rice-subsidies scheme.
AUSTRALIA
MELBOURNE - Stephen Kenny, lawyer for former Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks, criticizes former Australian premier Howard.
JAPAN
TOKYO - Nikkei stock index climbs to nearly 15-year high, while government data shows Japan's trade deficit shrank almost 58 percent in January compared to year before.
CAMBODIA
PHNOM PENH - Local rights group Licadho expresses concern at increase of land disputes in 2014.
MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA
KENYA
NAIROBI - Rwandan President Kagame due in Kenya to inaugurate power station.
NIGERIA
ABUJA - Follow up on surging violence between Boko Haram and government troops.
SPECIAL REPORTS
- Zambia's dwindling blood supply
By Francis Maingaila
LUSAKA (AA) - A shortage of blood has hit a number of hospitals in Zambia, including the country's two leading referral hospitals, with fewer volunteers willing to donate blood.
- Malawi pegs foreign business licenses to $250,000
By Moses Michael-Phiri
BLANTYRE, Malawi (AA) - Starting this year, Malawi will begin issuing new business licenses to foreign investors in return for payments of $250,000 (roughly 117 million Malawi kwacha) in an effort to curb the proliferation of petty foreign-owned businesses.
