Obama: troubled by trends in Turkey against free press, democracy

A demonstrator holds a newspaper with the headline ''Black day for the press'' during a protest outside the Cumhuriyet newspaper headquarters in Istanbul, Turkey, November 27, 2015.

Reuters/Osman Orsal


WASHINGTON U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday said he was troubled by trends in Turkey against a free press and said he had urged President Tayyip Erdogan not to pursue a strategy of repression and shutting down democratic debate in his country.


Obama, speaking to reporters at the conclusion of a nuclear security summit, said Turkey's cooperation with the United States had been critical on a number of international issues despite disagreements between the two countries.


(Reporting by Jeff Mason and Timothy Gardner; Editing by James Dalgleish)



Reuters weekly Election 2016 show tackles the tabloid tit-for-tat between candidates as the front runners brace for a fierce test in the Midwest. Video



The Most Influential Scientific Minds
Using citation analysis to identify authors whose papers wield outsized influence

• Global Innovation in 2015
• The Year in Biopharma