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

Turkey

Turkey

October 13, 2026

Ankara 1:11 am

14°C

Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters arrive in the northern Iraqi city of Dohuk on May 14, 2013, after leaving Turkey as part of a peace drive with Ankara.

Explainer

PKK pulls out of Metina in northern Iraq amid Turkey peace process

The withdrawal comes as the peace process between Turkey and the militant group gains momentum alongside increasing security cooperation between Ankara and Baghdad.

A cargo ship at the Port of Trabzon, Turkey

Analysis

Pragmatic politics: Why Turkey avoids blaming Russia for Black Sea attacks

Beyond economics, Ankara’s approach is also shaped by maintaining its role as an indispensable mediator between the Kremlin and the West.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (R) meets with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (L) during a visit on Oct. 7, 2026, in Athens, Greece.

Rubio signals US push to ease Greece-Turkey cable tensions

The top US diplomat said Washington was “very committed” to the subsea cable project as Ankara and Athens remain at odds over survey work in contested waters.

Turkish Navy infantry soldiers take part in the Denizkurdu-I/2026 Exercise in the Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Aksaz, at Marmaris in Mugla, on Sept. 24, 2026.

Turkey to send Mecca pact to parliament, opening path to Saudi deployment

Parliamentary ratification will remove a legal hurdle for Turkish military deployment to Saudi Arabia under a trilateral defense pact.

Latest News

Latest defection hands Erdogan’s AKP control of Turkey’s third-largest city

Izmir Mayor Cemil Tugay (R) his wife Oznur Tugay and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan acknowledge the audience after the mayor announced joining the ruling Justice and Development Party during a meeting with AKP lawmakers in Ankara, on Oct. 7, 2026.

Erdogan aide named suspect in Turkey financial scandal

Turkey's Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya speaks to media after arriving at the Ataturk International airport on March 12, 2017, in Istanbul.

Turkey, Pakistan to deploy forces to Saudi Arabia amid Houthi attacks

A Yemeni man holds up a mock missile decorated with the colors of the Palestinian flag and the chechered keffiyeh in front of portraits of slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar (L) and the leader of the Houthi movement, Abdel Malek al-Houthi (R), during a protest in Sanaa to denounce strikes on Yemen and Israel's bombardment of Gaza on Jan. 15, 2025.

Analysis

Turkey revives F-16 talks with US amid Israel, Greece deterrence concerns

Turkish Air Force F-16 fighter aircraft

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

A picture taken on Aug. 20, 2018, shows a general view of the US Embassy in Ankara.

Ankara lashes out at US envoy over security alerts: 'Get your filthy hands off Turkey'

Turkey’s rhetoric against Washington and several European capitals grows more belligerent, with the interior minister calling out the American ambassador.

Swedish consulate in Istanbul

Turkey denounces 'psychological war' as Western consulates close

Turkey has summoned ambassadors from nine countries after a number of diplomatic missions temporarily shut their doors amid a growing terror threat level.

Coal miners move a wagon of coal at a small coal mine on Dec. 9, 2021, in Zonguldak, Turkey.

Turkey plans to expand renewable energy but sticks to coal, nuclear

Clean energy advocates say Turkey should speed up its shift to renewable sources not only out of environmental concerns, but also to reduce its costly reliance on imported energy.

Police secure the area in front of the Turkish Embassy in Copenhagen.

Can Turkey's Erdogan decouple Finland's and Sweden’s NATO bids?

Though Erdogan is adopting a more positive attitude toward Finland's NATO bid as he slams the door in Sweden’s face once more, neither Helsinki nor NATO seem keen on leaving Sweden behind just yet. 

Turkish tanks are positioned in the Turkish military base in Bashiqa, several kilometers outside of Mosul, Iraq.

Pro-Iran group claims attack on Turkey's base in northern Iraq

The so-called Bashiqa base, which has long been a source of tension between Ankara and Baghdad, is a frequent target of rocket attacks by pro-Iranian groups in Iraq.

ANDREY BORODULIN/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey rises, Russia fades as Iran and Azerbaijan clash over Armenia

Conflict is looming once again between Armenia and Azerbaijan as regional powers maneuver in the Caucasus.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) made it clear that Congress will block the F-16s sale to Turkey, if Ankara doesn’t allow Finland and Sweden into NATO. Van Hollen speaking at the Baltimore and Potomac (B&P) Tunnel North Portal on January 30, 2023 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Senator Van Hollen says no F-16s for Turkey if Sweden, Finland not admitted to NATO

The Democratic senator also discussed concerns about Israel’s new government, China’s inroads in the Gulf and more at the Al-Monitor PRO event.

Middle East corruption rankings: Syria most corrupt, UAE least, Turkey slipped

Corruption remains rampant across the Middle East and North Africa, Transparency International reports, with the region’s average score in combating corruption hitting a new low of 38.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Can Erdogan run for third term in Turkey's upcoming election?

The opposition declares Erdogan’s candidacy “unconstitutional” while the Turkish president says his path to run for a third term is "clear."

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

US warns Americans in Turkey of 'imminent terrorist' attacks

The US Embassy in Ankara updated its previous security alert warning its nationals against potential "retaliatory attacks" in response to Quran-burning protests in Europe.

Turkish anti riot police officers patrol around the Sultan Ahmet Mosque during snowfall, Istanbul, Turkey, Jan. 8, 2017.

Why are foreign mobsters, drug gangs attracted to Turkey?

A wave of foreign mobster violence in Turkey has raised alarm that the country has become a safe haven for criminal kingpins from the region and beyond.

An employee takes a box of medicines on shelves at a pharmacy in the Turkish capital Ankara on December 13, 2021. - Turkeys pharmacists have brought to light the struggle of many patients who need medicines to treat diseases like diabetes and childrens fevers but cannot find them. They say the crisis that has deteriorated because of the fall in the Turkish liras value. (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey's medicine shortages could turn into 'drug famine' with no end in sight

In all Turkish pharmacies Al-Monitor visited recently, the drug shortage was palpable. Children's medicines, antibiotics, some cancer drugs top Turkey's long-unavailable drug list.