Trump’s senior advisor visits Turkey amid tensions
Washington: The White House said on Sunday that a senior advisor of US President Donald Trump visited Turkey on February 10 and 11 amid escalating tensions of the two NATO allies over Turkey's attack in Afrin, Syria.
Citing a White House statement, Xinhua reported that H.R. McMaster, Trump's National Security Advisor, met with Ibrahim Kalin, Deputy Secretary General and Spokesperson of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in his visit to Istanbul.
During their meeting, Kalin and McMaster affirmed the bilateral strategic partnership and discussed the "priorities and concerns" and common strategic challenges of both countries, said the White House.
It added that they addressed issues affecting bilateral relations in detail and explored ways to expand the joint fight against all forms of terrorism.
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will also visit Turkey next week in his Middle East trip and US Secretary of Defense James Mattis is also due to meet his Turkish counterpart Nurettin Canikli in Brussels.
Relations between Washington and Ankara have been highly strained, in part due to US support for the the People's Protection Units (YPG) in Syria.
Turkey sees the YPG as Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is designated as a terrorist group by Turkey, the US and the EU.
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Bengaluru: Karnataka mulls ban social media for children below 16, says Priyank Kharge
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government is considering a ban on the use of social media for children below the age of 16, taking inspiration from steps taken by countries such as Australia and Finland, The New Indian Express reported.
Minister for Rural Development and Panchayat Raj and IT-BT, Priyank Kharge, informed the Assembly on Friday that the issue is under discussion. Responding to senior BJP leader and MLA S Suresh Kumar, who expressed concern over the abuse of social media, Kharge admitted that it is a serious issue.
Finland has taken action, the UK is considering similar steps, and Australia imposed a ban two months ago. “We too in the state have launched a digital detoxification programme for responsible use of AI and social media. The IT-BT department, in collaboration with Meta, has been running it by involving over three lakh children and one lakh teachers,” TNIE quoted him as saying.
Kharge said that in March 2025, the government launched the ‘Beyond Screens’ programme to help people dealing with digital addiction. The initiative was announced during the GAFX 2025 summit, along with the opening of a ‘Beyond Screens’ digital detox centre and the launch of an official website.
The detox centre serves as a dedicated hub for resources, counselling and intervention programmes for healthier digital habits.
During the Assembly session, Suresh Kumar also referred to the Economic Survey 2025-26, which was presented in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. The survey recommended that governments consider age-based restrictions on social media use for children.
