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Turkey

Turkey

June 17, 2026

Ankara 2:19 pm

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Orthodox Patriarch of Bartholomew at the presidential complex, Ankara, Turkey, June 16, 2026.

Culture

Turkey’s Erdogan meets Orthodox patriarch amid push for reopening Halki Seminary

The meeting comes ahead of US President Trump’s expected attendance at next month's NATO leaders’ summit in Turkey, after Trump personally urged his Turkish counterpart to reopen the Halki Seminary.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attends the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, on May 22, 2026.

Turkey’s Fidan heads to Moscow as S-400 sanctions issue returns to fore

The visit comes weeks before Turkey hosts NATO leaders, on the sidelines of which Ankara hopes to reach a deal with Washington over CAATSA sanctions over its purchase of Russian S-400s.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York on Sept. 19, 2023.

Analysis

Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence

The latest Erdogan-Netanyahu clash underscored how Turkey-Israel tensions have grown beyond the Palestinian issue and into a wider regional rivalry spanning Syria, Lebanon, Iran and the eastern Mediterranean.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Yasin AKGUL / AFP via Getty Images

Feature

Turkey’s World Cup return clouded by politics, dawn kickoffs

Turkey finally has the World Cup moment it waited 24 years for, but much of the country will either be asleep for it or arguing over efforts to claim it.

Ezgi Akin

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

Latest News

Explainer

Turkey slams France-Cyprus military pact as East Med rivalries deepen

Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides (2nd L) and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron (C) review the honor guard at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia on April 23, 2026, ahead of a meeting on the sidelines of a European summit.

Analysis

As Trump admin drops Halkbank case, S-400 last big hurdle in US-Turkey ties

Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missile launching system is displayed at the exposition field in Kubinka Patriot Park outside Moscow on Aug. 22, 2017 during the first day of the International Military-Technical Forum Army-2017.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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

Israeli right shifts stance on Armenian genocide amid Turkey spat

Israeli lawmakers on the right are finally set to recognize the "Armenian Holocaust" — but perhaps just to spite Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and score points with their bases.

Iraq elections: Will Sadr seek a new beginning with Turkey?

Ankara is welcoming Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr’s stand against foreign intervention and military presence — as long as it doesn't apply to Turkey.

Erdogan pushes Abbas to reconcile with Hamas

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan calls for inter-Palestinian reconciliation as part of his attempts to portray himself as the savior of Gaza.

A Turkish military armoured vehicle guards on the border line located opposite the Syrian town of Atimah, Idlib province, in this picture taken from Reyhanli, Hatay province, Turkey October 10, 2017. REUTERS/Osman Orsal - RC117E0C0980

Turkey’s de-escalation efforts around Idlib come with risks

Turkey has erected its final observation post in the Idlib region, but many unknowns and potential hazards remain.

Pro-Islamist demonstrators shout slogans during a protest against France near the French Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey May 9, 2018. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1C4A9966F0

After calls to change the Quran, Turkey moves to ban all things French

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s anger over a French manifesto on changing the Quran failed to generate outrage among the Turkish public, but did result in decisions on education policy harmful to Turkish students.

Turkey and Israel: Barking, biting, but still doing business

The ties between Israel and Turkey are being strained and stretched, but they aren't likely to snap as long as both sides benefit from the relationship.

Garo Paylan, newly elected Armenian lawmaker from the Pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), greets supporters during a gathering to celebrate the party's victory during the parliamentary election, in Istanbul, Turkey, June 8, 2015. A record number of women, together with Christians, ethnic Kurds and Armenians, are set to enter Turkey's parliament after Sunday's election, a huge shift for a country that has long viewed demands for diversity as a threat to national unity. A total of 97 female lawmakers

Armenian-Turkish lawmaker targeted as Erdogan courts far-right

Ethnic Armenian lawmaker Garo Paylan is facing charges of "insulting the Turkish nation" and its president as Turkish prosecutors work to revoke his parliamentary immunity from prosecution.

Turkey welcomes back foreign cash, no questions asked

Scrambling to ease a bruising hard currency crunch, the Turkish government has enacted a wealth amnesty bill that opens the door to the repatriation of shadowy money from abroad.

Neli_Haddid,.jpg

Syrian family finds shelter, job in Mardin church

In the multicultural city of Mardin, a Syrian refugee made her life taking care of a church.

(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on April 1, 2018 shows a file photo taken on November 19, 2017 of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) attending the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem and a file photo taken on December 15, 2017 of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the inauguration ceremony of Turkey's first automated urban metro line on the Asian side of Istanbul.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Benjamin Netanyahu on April 1, 2018 of being "a terrorist" a

Turkish-Israeli gap widens with bitter exchanges

Turkey’s ties with Israel could be heading for a historic breakdown as tensions with the United States groan under ever greater weight.

Teenagers read the Koran in Paris March 31, 2012. Picture taken March 31, 2012. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra (FRANCE - Tags: SOCIETY RELIGION) - GM1E8421QDA01

French group's manifesto against Quran draws rebuttals in Egypt

A French group's call for removing some Quranic verses prompted responses ranging from "Ignore it and it'll go away" to "Go to hell."

A Turkish soldier stands on an armoured vehicle in a village near the Turkish-Syrian border in Hatay province, Turkey February 25, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC174F023F10

Congress puts US military sales to Turkey in jeopardy

Lawmakers in both chambers want to penalize the NATO ally for detaining an American pastor and signing arms deals with Russia.