President Donald Trump on Saturday welcomed home the American pastor whose incarceration sparked one of the lowest points in US-Turkey relations, but the impact of his release on the Nato allies’ troubled relationship remained to be seen.
Andrew Brunson, a 50-year-old evangelical preacher from North Carolina, was freed on Friday despite being sentenced to just over three years on terror charges. Judges ruled that the two years he had already spent in jail or under house arrest was sufficient punishment.
The decision removed one of the central disputes between Ankara and Washington in recent years, but it remains unclear whether it will be enough to repair ties or do much to restore the ailing Turkish economy, which was put under greater pressure by the affair.
Keeping Mr Brunson in detention raised the risk of further US retaliation and more damage to the Turkish economy, according to Inan Demir, a senior economist at Nomura International.
"If Brunson is not released, the markets will start to price in further sanctions by the US," Mr Demir told The National before the court delivered its verdict. "And, as long as we don't have much clarity on the US sanctions, the markets' inclination will be to price in the more adverse scenario."
Selim Sazak, an adjunct fellow at New York’s Century Foundation and an international relations doctoral candidate at Brown University, noted that Turkey’s economic issues were more deep-rooted.
“Turkey’s problems are its own, they’re not of the US’s making,” he said. “The US is not responsible for appointing the president’s son-in-law to head the finance ministry or for overseeing a runaway credit boom or for corruption.
“The Turkish economy faces multiple organ failure, it’s systemic.”
Although the Turkish lira, which had lost about 40 per cent of its value against the dollar this year, recovered by 3 per cent in the run-up to the court hearing that saw Mr Brunson freed, there was little change on Friday, although 10-year Turkish government bonds gained nearly 12 per cent in price.
“We’re talking about an extra cherry on the cake,” Mr Sazak said. “But the problem’s not the cherries, it’s the cake itself, which is falling apart.”
Arrested in October 2016, Mr Brunson’s case was highlighted by President Donald Trump over the summer. In August, Washington imposed sanctions on two Turkish cabinet ministers and later doubled tariffs on steel and aluminium, sending the lira to a historic low against the dollar.
The case had also become a lightning rod for a host of disputes between the US and Turkey.
These include the refusal to extradite US-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, who Ankara accuses of masterminding a July 2016 coup attempt; American support for Syrian-Kurdish fighters linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has waged a four-decade fight against Turkey; the conviction and imprisonment of a Turkish bank executive for breaking US sanctions on Iran; and Turkey’s deal with Russia to buy air defence missiles.
As well as Mr Brunson, Turkey has jailed an unknown number of other US citizens, including Turkish-American Nasa scientist Serkan Golge, and local consulate staff.
The US has indicated it will also push for their release but on the day Mr Brunson was freed, Hamza Ulucay, a translator at the Adana consulate who faces 15 years in jail on terror charges, had his request to be let out of prison turned down.
Welcoming Mr Brunson’s release, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said the US was still “deeply concerned about the continued detention of other United States citizens in Turkey”.
Refusing to say if the sanctions on Turkish ministers would now be lifted, she added: “The United States and Turkey have a number of mutual concerns regarding regional security and stability and we look forward to working together on these issues.”
______________
Read more:
Who is Pastor Andrew Brunson?
Turks refuse to back down in diplomatic spat with Trump team
US sanctions Turkey over Pastor Brunson detention
Turkish court rejects US pastor's appeal
Trump tweets support for American pastor on trial in Turkey
______________
The imprisonment of Americans has endangered Turkey’s acquisition of F-35 fighter jets, which it helped develop alongside other Nato members. US senators specifically cited “wrongfully or unlawfully” held US citizens when proposing a bill to block the transfer of F-35s to Turkey earlier this year.
In addition, the two countries are now embroiled in the case of missing Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a US resident who disappeared after visiting the Saudi consulate in Istanbul nearly two weeks ago.
“It’s difficult to see what difference the Brunson case alone will make to the relationship between Turkey and the US,” said a political scientist at a leading Istanbul university who asked not to be named.
“There are so many issues and I don’t know who’s going to step on whose toes the next time round. They might have learned one thing, which is not to push a problem to such an extreme, but this is not a significant step towards reconciliation or convergence because tomorrow it will be something else.”
Before the Mr Brunson's arrival at the White House, Mr Trump tweeted his thanks to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “for his help”, although the Turkish leader has repeatedly said that the case was a matter for the judiciary and out of his hands.
Mr Trump dismissed reports that the pastor's freedom was the result of an arrangement between Washington and Ankara.
And despite Mr Trump's optimism that the result would be “good, perhaps great” ties with Turkey, Mr Sazak said the fraught US-Turkey relationship remained unresolved.
“Unless you solve the PKK problem and the Gulen problem, there will be no solution,” he said.
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KEY%20DATES%20IN%20AMAZON'S%20HISTORY
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Fixtures
Tuesday - 5.15pm: Team Lebanon v Alger Corsaires; 8.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Pharaohs
Wednesday - 5.15pm: Pharaohs v Carthage Eagles; 8.30pm: Alger Corsaires v Abu Dhabi Storms
Thursday - 4.30pm: Team Lebanon v Pharaohs; 7.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Carthage Eagles
Friday - 4.30pm: Pharaohs v Alger Corsaires; 7.30pm: Carthage Eagles v Team Lebanon
Saturday - 4.30pm: Carthage Eagles v Alger Corsaires; 7.30pm: Abu Dhabi Storms v Team Lebanon
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
Napoleon
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Book%20Details
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On Instagram: @WithHopeUAE
Although social media can be harmful to our mental health, paradoxically, one of the antidotes comes with the many social-media accounts devoted to normalising mental-health struggles. With Hope UAE is one of them.
The group, which has about 3,600 followers, was started three years ago by five Emirati women to address the stigma surrounding the subject. Via Instagram, the group recently began featuring personal accounts by Emiratis. The posts are written under the hashtag #mymindmatters, along with a black-and-white photo of the subject holding the group’s signature red balloon.
“Depression is ugly,” says one of the users, Amani. “It paints everything around me and everything in me.”
Saaed, meanwhile, faces the daunting task of caring for four family members with psychological disorders. “I’ve had no support and no resources here to help me,” he says. “It has been, and still is, a one-man battle against the demons of fractured minds.”
In addition to With Hope UAE’s frank social-media presence, the group holds talks and workshops in Dubai. “Change takes time,” Reem Al Ali, vice chairman and a founding member of With Hope UAE, told The National earlier this year. “It won’t happen overnight, and it will take persistent and passionate people to bring about this change.”
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Huroob Ezterari
Director: Ahmed Moussa
Starring: Ahmed El Sakka, Amir Karara, Ghada Adel and Moustafa Mohammed
Three stars
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The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
Torque: 475Nm
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
Price: From Dh215,900
On sale: Now
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
The biog
Name: Salem Alkarbi
Age: 32
Favourite Al Wasl player: Alexandre Oliveira
First started supporting Al Wasl: 7
Biggest rival: Al Nasr
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.
