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Turkey

Turkey

May 9, 2026

Ankara 2:15 pm

19°C

MURAT KOCABAS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Culture

How ‘dog mom’ vacuum cleaner ad sparked culture war in Turkey

A Mother’s Day advertisement featuring a “dog mom” triggered a backlash from conservative media, government officials and regulators, turning a soft consumer campaign into a flashpoint over motherhood, declining birth rates, stray dogs and even antisemitism.

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.

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 boy waves a flag as supporters of Pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) shout slogans during a rally as part of Nowruz (Newroz), or Kurdish New Year, celebrations in Ankara, on March 21, 2021.

Gunman kills woman volunteering for Turkey’s pro-Kurdish party

Peoples' Democratic Party deputy Garo Paylan brushed aside the gunman’s claims that his was a lone wolf attack, citing gun-toting photos of the 27-year-old attacker in Syria posted on social media.

YVES HERMAN/AFP via Getty Images

Erdogan tells Biden Turkey won't change position on S-400s

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan reportedly told his US counterpart that Ankara won't soften its stance on the Russian S-400 missile systems despite sanctions imposed by Washington over the purchase.

US President Joe Biden (R) speaks with Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan prior to a plenary session of a NATO summit at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) headquarters in Brussels, on June 14, 2021.

The Takeaway: Pragmatism is the new watchword in US-Turkey relations

Plus: A fresh start for Israel; Iran’s hard-line front-runner on the issues; Egypt’s faltering Palestinian mediation; Saudi-Syria talks; Golani’s makeover.

Faruk Ugur waits for customers while selling hot wine at the entrance to his closed restaurant in the Kadikoy district on February 23, 2021 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Critics say Erdogan used pandemic to kill Turkey’s nightlife

Many out-of-work veterans of Turkey's once thriving entertainment world suspect the ruling party of using COVID-19 restrictions to enforce a more conservative lifestyle.

A woman receives a dose of Pfizer BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19 at the Ankara City Hospital, in Ankara, Turkey, on June 7, 2021.

Turkey gives record 1.24 million vaccine doses in one day

Long lines formed outside Turkish vaccination clinics this week after health officials ramped up the nation’s inoculation drive, administering a record 1.24 million vaccine doses Tuesday.

A Kurdish female peshmerga fighter carries her weapon while walking in the foothills of the Qandil Mountains located along the Iraq-Iran border, May 5, 2006.

Deadly attacks stoke KDP-PKK tensions in Iraqi Kurdistan

Turkish Kurdish militants entrenched in Iraqi Kurdistan face mounting calls to leave the region after the killing of six members of the Iraqi Kurdish armed forces.

The national flags of Azerbaijan (L) and Turkey, and portraits of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev (R) hang side-by-side on the mayoral building in the Kecioren district of Ankara on October 21, 2020.

Erdogan, Aliyev cement military and business ties during Karabakh 'victory lap'

Erdogan announced that Turkey would be opening a consulate in the disputed territory and that the two countries would co-produce military drones.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and US President Joe Biden (R) attend a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) headquarters in Brussels on June 14, 2021.

Turkish lira dives after inconclusive Erdogan-Biden meeting

Propelled by optimism over a possible S-400 missile compromise, Turkey’s lira slid Tuesday after the first meeting between US President Joe Biden and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ended without clear progress.

US President Joe Biden (R) speaks with Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan prior to a plenary session of a NATO summit at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) headquarters in Brussels, on June 14, 2021.

Erdogan’s meeting with Biden more spin than substance

The two leaders' first meeting as heads of state led to detailed discussions, but there were no breakthroughs.

This photograph taken on May 14, 2014, shows a Gaza-Turkey solidarity flag projected on a wall of the Ankara Castle in Ankara, Turkey.

Turkey’s muddled approach to Palestine

Ankara sees a recently ratified security cooperation deal between Turkey and the Palestinian Authority as groundwork for a possible maritime boundary agreement between Turkey and Palestine. Experts see such prospects as far-fetched.

Turkish kids watch TV

Turkey’s religious agency plans to launch children's TV channel

Turkey’s Religious Affairs Directorate, which has long lamented the influence of foreign cartoons on children, now seeks to establish a kids channel.

TB2 drone

Will Washington buy Ankara’s ‘drone crescent’ against Russia?

Scrambling for a thaw with Washington, Ankara hopes to draw on the success of its military drones — battle-proven against Russian weaponry — to cast itself as a key partner in US efforts to contain Russia in eastern Europe and beyond.