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

Turkey

Turkey

May 7, 2026

Ankara 9:55 pm

12°C

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.

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara, May 6, 2026.

Saudi FM in Turkey as Ankara, Riyadh step up coordination amid Iran war

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan’s visit to Ankara comes amid rapidly expanding Turkish-Saudi coordination as the fallout from the Iran war reshapes Gulf security dynamics.

Latest News

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.

Turkey hosts Kuwaiti FM as UAE's OAPEC exit fuels Gulf rift

Sabah Fidan

Analysis

Iraq’s Zaidi offers economic promise for Turkey but unknowns loom

Zaidi

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

Members of the Shi'ite Badr Organisation fighters take cover behind a berm during a battle with Islamic State militants at the airport of Tal Afar west of Mosul, Iraq, November 20, 2016. REUTERS/Khalid al Mousily - RTSSJEJ

Shiite forces advance on Tal Afar in Mosul operation

Predominately Shiite Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) have liberated Tal Afar airport to the west of Mosul and now seek to coordinate with Kurdish peshmerga forces on the front.

Turkish army tanks and military personal are stationed in Karkamis on the Turkish-Syrian border in the southeastern Gaziantep province, Turkey, August 25, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX2MYL0

Is Turkey all talk, or will it split from the West, NATO?

Ankara is sending out plenty of signals that it might leave the West and head east toward Russia and China.

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov speaks to journalists upon his arrival in Damascus December 10, 2014. REUTERS/Omar Sanadiki (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4HF01

Kremlin unsure how to take Erdogan's vow to topple Assad

A Russian diplomat has expressed confusion and cautious disapproval over Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan openly saying that Turkey's main objective in Syria is to topple the regime.

A Syrian government soldier gestures a v-sign under the Syrian national flag near a general view of eastern Aleppo after they took control of al-Sakhour neigbourhood in Aleppo, Syria in this handout picture provided by SANA on November 28, 2016. SANA/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. REUTERS IS UNABLE TO INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THIS IMAGE. - RTSTSGY

Why Aleppo’s fall will be a game-changer for Turkey

The recapture of Aleppo by Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad’s forces could turn the tables on Turkey.

Turkey's central bank governor Murat Cetinkaya speaks during a news conference in Istanbul, Turkey April 26, 2016. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTX2C6AI

How the Turkish lira entered free fall

The European Parliament’s vote to suspend Turkey’s membership talks is the latest move to worsen the rapid decline of the Turkish lira's foreign exchange rates.

Turkish army tanks and military personal are stationed in Karkamis on the Turkish-Syrian border in the southeastern Gaziantep province, Turkey, August 25, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX2MYWR

Erdogan's shifting rationale on Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's latest rationale for Turkish forces entering northern Syria point to a long-term engagement.

Muhamed, a Syrian refugee boy, works at a small textile factory in Istanbul, Turkey, June 24, 2016. Picture taken June 24, 2016. To match Special Report EUROPE-MIGRANTS/TURKEY-CHILDREN REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTSJN5J

Turkish companies flout law for cheap Syrian labor

Unemployment in Turkey has reached 11.3%, and Syrian refugees have become a convenient scapegoat.

Men ride motorbikes past a Turkish armored carrier in the northern Syrian rebel-held town of al-Rai, in Aleppo Governorate, Syria, October 5, 2016. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RTSQWHY

Erdogan comes face to face with US, Russia in Syria

Turkey may have gone into Syria to push back Syrian Kurds, but it now finds itself confronting both Russia and the United States.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan attend a session of the World Energy Congress in Istanbul, Turkey, October 10, 2016. Sputnik/Kremlin/Alexei Druzhinin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - RTSRLXH

Why Russia isn’t rushing to lift sanctions on Turkey

Russia appears to be in no hurry to remove all of its sanctions against Turkey, even though it’s been a year since they were imposed.

Free Syrian Army fighters walk past a Turkish tank mounted on a transporter in the northern Syrian rebel-held town of al-Rai, in Aleppo Governorate, Syria, October 5, 2016. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RTSQWHS

Did IS kill Turkish troops in Syria?

The Turkish government is remaining silent while some say the Islamic State — not the Syrian air force, as Ankara claims — was responsible for an attack on Turkish forces in northern Syria.

U.S. President elect Donald Trump reacts to a crowd gathered in the lobby of the New York Times building after a meeting in New York, U.S., November 22, 2016. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson - RTSSU9I

What do Kurds expect from Trump?

Turkey's Kurds are wondering what kind of policy President-elect Donald Trump will follow on Turkey's Kurdish problem.

A Turkish flag is seen next to the dome of a mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, July 16, 2016. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis - RTSIBCJ

How Ankara plans to manage Kurds' religious affairs

After firing hundreds of imams in Turkey's southeast region, the Religious Affairs Directorate wants to hand-pick preachers that will help the Kurds remember "real Islam."