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Turkey

Turkey

November 11, 2026

Ankara 3:27 pm

11°C

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Explainer

Iran war pushes up coal use, complicating Turkey’s COP31 pledge

Turkey is asking world leaders at COP31 to back a global push to use more electricity, even as the Iran war has driven up natural gas prices and pushed some power producers back to coal.

OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey bars MP’s wife from travel after his fund scandal criticism: What to know

Opposition politicians and rights advocates described Yonca Verdioglu Sik’s brief detention as an attempt to intimidate her husband, opposition lawmaker Ahmet Sik, over his criticism of the government.

A steel worker works in front of giant iron melting pot in Kardemir Iron and Steel Factory in Karabuk, northwestern Turkey, Aug. 26 2005. (TARIK TINAZAY/AFP via Getty Images)

Steel factory explosion in western Turkey kills at least 16

Footage from the scene showed a huge plume of thick smoke spreading into the sky as flames engulfed a tall structure within the plant.

Latest News

Analysis

Will Democrats block Trump’s push to deliver Turkey F-35s, lift sanctions?

MEHMET ESER/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Costa Rica's Grynspan extends lead in UNSG poll as Nusseibeh places fourth

United Arab Emirates

Turkey’s parliament ratifies Mecca pact in boost to Saudi Arabia

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses Turkish members of parliament during the opening of the parliamentary session at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey in Ankara, on Oct. 1, 2026.

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

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

Russia keeps Turkish trucks parked

Russia by not renewing the Road Transport Accord that expired Feb. 1 delivered a significant blow to Turkish exports.

Turks kick around Erdogan conspiracy

When the pro-government media discovers a political conspiracy in a soccer game, it is not time to be amused, but to be worried.

Will Putin’s economic attacks bring Erdogan down?

The economic warfare declared by Russia damages the Turkish economy beyond expectations.

Honour guards carry Turkish flag-draped coffins of car bombing victims during a funeral ceremony at Kocatepe mosque in Ankara, Turkey February 19, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX27OD3

Identification of Ankara bomber muddled by faulty communication

Debate over the identity of the February suicide bomber in Ankara reveals flaws in authorities' communication.

A Turkish Shi'ite girl holds a chain as she mourns during an Ashura procession in Istanbul November 24, 2012. Muslims all over the world mourn the slaying of Imam Hussein during the first ten days of the Islamic month of Muharram. Imam Hussein was killed by his political rivals along with 72 companions in the seventh century battle of Kerbala. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: ANNIVERSARY RELIGION) - RTR3ATV2

Is 'Iran-phobia' spreading in Turkey?

The former leader of Turkey's main opposition party raises hackles with what his critics say is sectarian rhetoric.

How one Kurdish doctor is helping to treat victims of IS

A German psychologist tells Al-Monitor about his work with rape victims of the Islamic State, lauding their strength and resilience.

What fading oil fortunes means for Turkey's businesses

Turkish businesspeople are losing sleep over oil-producing states' deferrals of payments to international contractors and the possible loss of mega projects.

A woman smokes in a bar as she drinks the Turkish traditional beverage Raki in Ankara February 12, 2008. Turkey is the eighth biggest cigarette market in the world, with nearly 60 percent of male adults estimated to smoke. Six global cigarette producers and state-run Tekel compete for the lucrative market. Picture taken February 12, 2008. To match feature TURKEY-CIGARETTES/ REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY) - RTR1X0MR

Are books and movies promoting smoking and drinking? Erdogan thinks so

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s railing against smoking and alcohol has sparked concerns over censorship of movies and literary works deemed to promote the two "evils."

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, flanked by his deputy Besir Atalay (L) and Energy Minister Taner Yildiz (R), speaks during a news conference at Ataturk International airport in Istanbul April 4, 2014. Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan called on Friday for the central bank to cut interest rates, sending the lira lower, and said he favoured keeping a three-term limit for ruling party deputies, suggesting he may run in August presidential polls. In his first public comments since a victory speech a

What happened to Turkey's foreign policy?

Turkey has made some major mistakes with its one-dimensional foreign policy, say former ambassadors who served under the Justice and Development Party.

U.S. Foreign Secretary John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (L) attend the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) meeting in Munich, Germany, February 11, 2016, together with members of the Syrian opposition and other officials. REUTERS/Michael Dalder - RTX26J5J

US, Russia reach partial Syria truce deal

The United States and Russia have reached an agreement on a cessation of hostilities in Syria, to go into effect Feb. 27, yet the plan excludes both the Islamic State and al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra.

How one Kurdish woman went from child soldier to Swedish lawmaker

Swedish parliamentarian Amineh Kakabaveh tells Al-Monitor about her remarkable journey from Kurdish guerrilla camps in Iraq’s mountains to the rostrum of European politics.

Turkish Airlines aircrafts are parked at the Ataturk International airport in Istanbul, Turkey December 3, 2015. Turkish Airlines, Europe's fourth biggest carrier, said the number of its passengers rose 8.1 year-on-year in January to 4.7 million. In a statement to the Istanbul stock exchange on Tuesday evening February 16, 2016, it said load factor, which measures an airline's capacity utilisation, declined by 2.2 percentage points to 74.2. Picture taken December 3, 2015. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTX27BA3

To stop tourism slump, Erdogan asks Turks to holiday at home

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is asking Turks to spend their holidays in Turkey, to alleviate the loss in revenue of Russian tourists who will not travel to Turkey this year.