Anadolu Agency’s Morning Briefing - March 16, 2023

ANKARA (AA) - Anadolu Agency is here with a rundown of the latest developments around the world.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday that he told his Russian counterpart the US will "continue to fly and to operate wherever international law allows" after a Russian fighter jet collided with an American drone, causing it to crash into the Black Sea.

Russia said Wednesday that it will attempt to retrieve the wreckage of a US drone that crashed in the Black Sea.

Türkiye is "closely" following Tuesday's drone crash over the Black Sea and is in “various contacts,” National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Wednesday.

At least 14 people were killed Wednesday due to flash floods in Türkiye's southeastern Adiyaman and Sanliurfa provinces, the country’s interior minister said Wednesday.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday that Türkiye will "do its part" after upcoming talks with his Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinisto on Finland’s NATO bid.

Sweden hopes that its NATO membership will be ratified after Türkiye’s elections in May, the Swedish prime minister said Wednesday.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu held a phone conversation Wednesday with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov to discuss the Black Sea Grain Initiative and bilateral relations.

Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov claimed Wednesday that a US unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) gathered reconnaissance information to convey it to Ukraine for strikes on Russia.

Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan said Wednesday that the Kingdom’s investments in Iran could happen quickly, especially in the wake of the recent agreement between the two countries.

After clinching a normalization deal with Saudi Arabia in Beijing last week, Iran's top security official is slated to embark on a visit to the United Arab Emirates on Thursday.

As the conflict in Syria enters its 13th year, the situation in the country is “untenable,” the UN special envoy said Wednesday, stressing that to continue on the same path “defies humanity and logic.”

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Wednesday with Ethiopian Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen and other officials in the capital Addis Ababa as both countries look to repair ties following the war in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region.