Turkey - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Turkey

Turkey

May 8, 2026

Ankara 11:39 pm

13°C

People look at a drone on display at the Baykar exhibit at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Turkey, Japan launch defense industry partnership with eye on drones

The initiative could eventually lead to joint UAV development and production as Japan looks to expand drone capabilities amid regional tensions.

Latest News

Saudi FM in Turkey as Ankara, Riyadh step up coordination amid Iran war

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara, May 6, 2026.

Turkey, Armenia agree to restore medieval bridge in normalization push

A picture taken near Kars on Feb. 28, 2024 shows the ruins of a bridge over Arpacay river, the natural border between Turkey and Armenia.

Turkey hosts Kuwaiti FM as UAE's OAPEC exit fuels Gulf rift

Sabah Fidan

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Amberin Zaman

Chief Correspondent

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

Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

A view of the construction site of Turkey's first nuclear power plant 'Akkuyu', pictured during the opening ceremony in the Mediterranean Mersin region on April 3, 2018.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin launched the construction of the $20 billion dollar Akkuyu nuclear power plant though a video link from Ankara where Putin is on an official visit. / AFP PHOTO / DOGAN NEWS AGENCY / IBRAHIM MESE / Turkey OUT (Photo credit should read IBRAHIM MESE/AFP via G

Critics say Turkey’s unfinished nuclear plant already redundant

Turkey’s power plant building spree has resulted in an enormous idle capacity but the construction of new plants continues at the expense of taxpayers despite the country’s bruising economic woes.

Congress passes annual defense spending bill mandating sanctions on Turkey

Trump has vowed to veto the bill, which includes a mandate for the administration to sanction Turkey over the S-400.

Turkey’s Erdogan blasts ‘disrespectful’ US sanctions plan

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan responded to reports that Washington is planning on imposing sanctions over Turkey's purchase of Russian-made missile systems.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (L), European Council President Charles Michel (C) and Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel (R) give a press conference at the end of an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, on December 11, 2020. (Photo by JOHANNA GERON / various sources / AFP) (Photo by JOHANNA GERON/AFP via Getty Images)

European Union has vindicated Erdogan, yet again

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan didn’t give a damn about possible European Union sanctions against Turkey, and the EU has proved him right.

The Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drone is pictured on December 16, 2019 at Gecitkale military airbase near Famagusta in the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). - The Turkish military drone was delivered to northern Cyprus amid growing tensions over Turkey's deal with Libya that extended its claims to the gas-rich eastern Mediterranean. The Bayraktar TB2 drone landed in Gecitkale Airport in Famagusta around 0700 GMT, an AFP correspondent said, after the breakaway northern Cyprus governm

Will Turkish drones help Ukraine reclaim territory?

As the Ukrainian news media buzzes with speculation that Ukraine may be planning to reclaim control of Donbass by Turkish drones, direct involvement by Turkey in the Ukraine-Russia conflict would cost Ankara dearly in its relations with Moscow.

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen (1st-L) and EU leaders observe a minute silent in tribute to late French President Valery Giscard d'Estaing prior to a round table meeting during an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, on December 10, 2020. - European Union leaders meet for a year-end summit that will address anything from climate, sanctions against Turkey to budget and virus recovery plans. Brexit will be discussed on the sidelines. (Photo by Olivier Matthys / PO

EU to sanction Turkey over gas-drilling activities

At a summit in Brussels Thursday, European leaders appeared ready to impose sanctions on Turkish individuals and companies linked to energy-prospecting activities in the eastern Mediterranean Sea that have raised regional tensions over the last year.

Intel: Russia sets up military positions in Syria’s Ain Issa after shelling from Turkish-controlled side

The move follows Russian talks with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces

Shared interests in Iran, Caucuses push Turkey and Israel closer

Ankara’s growing isolation and a combination of broader geopolitical factors, including Iran and the Caucasus, are driving a fresh bid to normalize Turkish-Israeli ties.

Turkey chooses pro-Erdogan ambassador to Israel in bid to normalize ties

There has been no ambassador in either country since May 2018, when Ankara withdrew its envoy over escalating attacks on Palestinians in Gaza and Washington's decision to relocate its embassy to Jerusalem.

Attendees watch as a paratrooper makes a landing during an event by members of the the "Saiqa" (Special Forces) of the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA), loyal to eastern strongman Khalifa Haftar, in tribute to the unit's late commander General Wanis Bukhamada, who died a week prior, in the eastern city of Benghazi on November 6, 2020. (Photo by Abdullah DOMA / AFP) (Photo by ABDULLAH DOMA/AFP via Getty Images)

Eastern Libyan forces intercept Turkish ship en route to Misrata

Forces loyal to eastern Libyan strongman Khalifa Hifter intercepted a Jamaican-flagged Turkish ship in the Mediterranean Sea late Monday in a move that could escalate regional tensions.

A Turkish military M60T battle tank is seen along the M4 highway, which links the northern Syrian provinces of Aleppo and Latakia, before incoming joint Turkish and Russian military patrols (as per an earlier agreed upon ceasefire deal) in the village of al-Nayrab, about 14 kilometres southeast of the city of Idlib and seven kilometres west of Saraqib in northwestern Syria on March 15, 2020. - Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan reached a deal on March 5 to crea

Opposition turns up pressure on Erdogan over defense dealings with Qatar

Turkey’s political opposition has stepped up pressure on the government over its often-opaque dealings with Qatar as the country’s tank production contract, awarded to a Turkish-Qatari joint venture, remains bogged down.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a press conference in Athens on January 2, 2020 following the signing ceremony of an agreement for the EastMed pipeline project designed to ship gas from the eastern Mediterranean to Europe in Athens on January 2, 2020. (Photo by ARIS MESSINIS / AFP) (Photo by ARIS MESSINIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Mixed signals over Israel-Turkey relations

An article published in the Tel Aviv University Turkeyscope review might suggest that Ankara wants to rehabilitate its relations with Jerusalem.