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Turkey

November 7, 2024

Ankara 6:13 am

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US President Donald Trump greets Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan(L) upon arrival outside the White House in Washington, on Nov. 13, 2019.

Turkey’s Erdogan congratulates 'friend' Trump, but can bond survive friction over Gaza, Syria’s Kurds?

Despite occasional spats, Trump and Erdogan got along famously during the former president's first term.

Armenian protesters hold a flag of Armenia as they gather to rally against land transfer to Azerbaijan, on Yerevan's Republic Square on May 10, 2024. Armenia has agreed to hand over territory it has controlled since the 1990s and started border delimitation efforts in a bid to secure an elusive peace deal with Baku and avoid another bloody conflict. (Photo by KAREN MINASYAN / AFP) (Photo by KAREN MINASYAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Feature

How US policy on Azerbaijan could sway Armenian vote in Pennsylvania

The Armenian National Committee of America has not endorsed a candidate in the US presidential election, with its supporters saying neither the vice president nor former president show sufficient support for Armenian causes.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump

From Iran to Turkey, how the Middle East is bracing for US elections

With the US presidential election just one day away, how is the Middle East anticipating the result?

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan (R) and the leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), Devlet Bahceli, talk on stage during a rally before local elections in Ankara, March 23, 2019.

Turkey ousts 3 Kurdish mayors amid renewed efforts to forge deal with PKK

The dismissals come as Ankara has renewed talks with the Kurdistan Workers' Party and as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan eyes a third term.

Latest News

Analysis

Turkey slated to boost defense exports after major arms fair sees $6.2B in contracts

Visitors look at the Bayraktar Kizilelma UCAV during the opening day of SAHA EXPO 2024, an international defense and aerospace exhibition, Istanbul, Oct. 22, 2024.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Turkey to ditch Siemens for China contractor to build nuclear plant

JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images

Sign up to our Daily Briefing

Keep up with Al-Monitor's top stories with a morning digest from across the region.

Turkey announces initial payment for $23B F-16 jets deal

CLEMENT MAHOUDEAU/AFP via Getty Images

Why Turkey's Erdogan is mulling release of PKK leader from prison

FREDERICK FLORIN/AFP via Getty Images

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

In London, reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Ezgi Akin

Associate Editor (Turkey)

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Mustafa Sonmez

In Istanbul, reporting on economics

(L-R) Turkey's NATO Ambassador Zeki Levent Gumrukcu, Britain's Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs James Cleverly, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Sweden's Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom, NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg attend an Informal Meeting of the North Atlantic Council in Foreign Ministers in Oslo, Norway on June 1, 2023.

Will Turkey greenlight Sweden's NATO bid?

In an excerpt from this week's Turkey Briefing, Amberin Zaman looks at the latest drama surrounding Ankara's efforts to hold up Stockholm's accession to NATO.

An undated image of the exhibition at Feshane.

Turkey Islamist group calls for art expo's closure for 'blasphemy,' LGBTQ 'propaganda'

Islamist media and AKP members attacked Istanbul Municipality’s inaugural exhibition of top Turkish artists at Feshane, a recently renovated 19th-century factory.

Women activists of Pakistan Markazi Muslim League take part in a protest rally in Lahore on Jan. 29, 2023.

Middle East condemns, protests Quran burning in Sweden by Iraqi refugee

Quran burnings in Sweden have damaged the potential NATO member’s relationship with Turkey.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Armenia PM wishes Turkey’s Erdogan happy Eid as Azerbaijan targets Nagorno-Karabakh

Diplomatic sources say the call comes amid an ongoing effort aimed at getting Turkey to rein in an increasingly aggressive Azerbaijan.

Activists of the "Alliance against NATO" network hold a banner reading "No to NATO! - No alliance with fascists" during a demonstration for freedom of speech and association, in support of democratic forces in Turkey and against Swedish NATO membership, on June 4, 2023 in Stockholm, Sweden. Hundreds of protesters took to the streets in Stockholm city centre to demonstrate against Sweden's NATO bid and new anti-terror legislation, despite Ankara's objections. (Photo by Maja SUSLIN / TT News Agency / AFP) / S

Analysis

Turkey fumes at Quran burning in Sweden ahead of critical NATO talks

As a new protest adds a further layer of stress in NATO talks between Turkey and Sweden, analysts believe that prospects are "close to zero" for the Nordic nation’s accession to the alliance before the bloc’s summit.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Muslim worshippers take pictures of each other after attending the Eid al-Adha morning prayers at Doha's Education City Stadium, which hosted matches during Qatar's 2022 FIFA World Cup, on the first day of the Muslim holiday on June 28, 2023. Eid al-Adha, or Feast of Sacrifice, marks the end of the hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR / AFP) (Photo by KARIM JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)

Qatar seen most peaceful in Middle East as Israel dips, Turkey ties Iran: GPI

The Global Peace Index placed Turkey as the least peaceful country in Europe ranking, and tied with Iran as the 147th most peaceful country globally.

A screen grab from a video of Merdan Yanardag uploaded April 14, 2023.

Turkey arrests prominent TV journalist over criticizing Ocalan's isolation

Journalist Merdan Yanardag’s arrest comes amid a post-election climate in which many journalists feel threatened, according to media watchdogs.

A woman walks in a hallway at Sehit Duran primary school in Adana, Turkey, March 18, 2019.

Turkey’s conservatives tighten grip on schools as imams appointed ‘spiritual counselors’

Pro-secular parties and education unions launch a series of protests after Izmir's Religious Affairs Office, the local branch of Turkey’s powerful Diyanet, assigns imams and preachers to one-third of elementary and secondary schools for spiritual guidance.

Saudi-Iran-China

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Sign up to stay on top of China's quickly growing role in the region.

Women chant slogans in front of the Istanbul courthouse in Istanbul on April 5, 2023.

Turkey denies female inmate access to tampons

Imposing a long-held taboo, Turkish authorities have denied a female inmate’s access to disposable tampons.

Ferries and tourist boats navigate the Bosphorus on June 22, 2023 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Turkey holds up NATO defense strategy over straits amid Sweden standoff

As the July NATO summit approaches, Turkish demands over the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, among other issues, are reportedly holding up a defense strategy overhaul, the most ambitious since the end of the Cold War.

People wait to exchange money at a currency exchange shop on June 23, 2023 in Istanbul, Turkey. The Turkish Lira weakened to a record low of 25.74 against the dollar, a day after the central bank hiked interest rates from 8.5 percent to 15 percent in the first rate decision since the appointment of new central bank governor Hafize Gaye Erkan and the re-election of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last month. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Turkey’s smaller-than-expected rate hike comes as relief for banks

Turkey’s new economic chiefs are scrambling to navigate a return to rational policies as the lira continues to tumble, threatening to stoke inflation.