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Turkey

Turkey

September 4, 2026

Ankara 8:29 am

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Mecca Alliance

Israel, Greece sign $3.5 billion air-defense deal: What to know

Against the backdrop of growing tensions with Turkey, Israel signed one of its largest-ever defense industry deals to supply Greece with advanced air defense systems.

Mecca Alliance

Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan set Mecca Alliance into motion

The three countries are moving to formalize military coordination under the newly named Mecca Alliance amid renewed hostilities between Iran and the US.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa arrive for a joint press conference following their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Feb. 4, 2025.

Analysis

Why Turkey welcomes Israel-Syria talks despite mounting red lines

Turkey supports US-backed Israel-Syria talks but sees little prospect of a lasting accommodation until the Israeli elections.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Barcelona

Culture

In divided Cyprus, FC Barcelona youth camp sparks new dispute: What to know

A planned Barca Academy camp in northern Cyprus has offered more fuel to the controversy over the island’s unresolved divide, rasing tensions over recognition, access and international isolation.

Latest News

Top European court says Kavala case exposes erosion of judicial independence in Turkey

Omer Messinger/Getty Images

Explainer

Turkey’s Kurdish peace process moves to implementation: What to know and what’s next

Equality and Democracy Party lawmakers

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

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.

Soldiers stand guard at the Jordanian-Syrian border, near Mafraq, August 16, 2015. Commander of the Jordanian Border Guard, Brigadier General Saber Mahayrah, said on Sunday that there was no sign of Nusra Front or Islamist State fighters on the border between Jordan and Syria. REUTERS/Muhammad Hamed - RTX1OELU

Will Saudi Arabia pressure Jordan to join ground offensive in Syria?

There is increasing talk about a land war in Syria to combat the Islamic State, but the Jordanians thus far appear reluctant to get involved.

Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah addresses his supporters through a giant screen during a rally commemorating the annual Hezbollah Martyrs' Leader Day in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon February 16, 2016. REUTERS/Aziz Taher - RTX278R4

Does Hezbollah seek Israel’s elimination? 'Not so,' says Nasrallah

Hezbollah leader says group will not open new front against Israel; Turkey’s two-front war; battles for Aleppo “unlike any others”; Saudi military exercise provides distraction.

Fighters from the Democratic Forces of Syria position themselves in Ghazila village after taking control of the town from Islamic State forces in the southern countryside of Hasaka, Syria February 17, 2016. Picture taken February 17, 2016. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RTX27JLM

Can Ankara's plans keep up with Syria's escalation?

The course of events in Syria offer opportunities but also new threats to Ankara, which still has to deal with structural flaws in its Syrian policy.

A Turkish Air Force F-16 fighter jet ( C foreground) is seen between U.S. Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II fighter jets at Incirlik airbase in the southern city of Adana, Turkey, December 11, 2015. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX1Y843

Is Turkey crushing Kurdish self-rule in Syria?

Turkey seems intent on using the Feb. 17 bombing in Ankara as a pretext to crush the fledgling Kurdish self-rule in northern Syria that serves as an inspiration to its own Kurds.

Was last week's Ankara attack just the beginning?

The suicide bomb in Ankara on Feb. 17 was the first of its kind, and Ankara is now under pressure to make critical decisions.