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Turkey

Turkey

May 11, 2026

Ankara 8:17 pm

18°C

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 06: A man poses for a photograph in front of the newly unveiled, Turkish made intercontinental ballistic missile Yildirimhan at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. The International Defence and Aerospace Exhibition, showcased Turkish and foreign companies new products and technology. The expo was dominated by UAV products as modern warfare increasingly shifts to drone and unmanned technologies. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Analysis

From drones to deterrence: Turkey's ICBM missile signals bigger ambitions

Turkey’s planned test of a 6,000-kilometer missile could boost Ankara’s defense industry prestige, strengthen its deterrence messaging and feed a powerful domestic narrative of technological self-reliance, but it also raises questions about cost, timing and NATO protection.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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.

Latest News

Turkey, Japan launch defense industry partnership with eye on drones

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.

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.

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

Russia's President Vladimir Putin is pictured during a joint news conference with his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan (not pictured) in Ankara December 1, 2014. Putin said on Monday that Moscow could not carry on with the South Stream project if the European Union was opposed to it. Speaking at a joint news conference with Turkish President Erdogan, Putin said the European Commission was reluctant to give the green light to the South Stream project. REUTERS/Mikhail Klimentyev/RIA Novosti/Kremlin (TURKEY

Turkey treads carefully on new gas pipeline with Russia

Ankara doesn’t want to put all of its energy eggs into the Russian basket.

Riot police chase demonstrators during a protest in central Istanbul, Turkey, July 20, 2015. Police in Istanbul fired teargas and water cannon when a demonstration by protesters blaming the government for a suspected Islamic State suicide bombing turned violent, a Reuters witness said. Hundreds gathered near Istanbul's central Taksim Square after the bombing in the mostly Kurdish border town of Suruc which killed at least 30 people. Some chanted slogans against President Tayyip Erdogan and the ruling AK Par

Is Turkey's 'emergency rule' back?

With increasing tensions in the region, declaring 37 areas "provisional security zones" off-limits to civilians is seen by some as a resurrection of Turkey's emergency rule.

A woman walks along a street in the southeastern Turkish town of Silopi in Sirnak province, near the Turkish-Iraqi border crossing of Habur, Turkey, August 7, 2015. Five people were killed in eastern Turkey on Friday in a series of clashes between security forces and Kurdish militants, part of a surge in violence that has put further strain on a fragile peace process between Ankara and the rebels. Three people were killed and seven wounded during clashes between police and militants of the Kurdistan Workers

Ankara warms to idea of political solution in Syria

Ankara seems to be growing more amenable to a solution that includes the Syrian regime, unhappy about perceptions that it has used the international effort against the Islamic State as an excuse to resume strikes against the Kurdistan Workers Party.

Turkish soldiers stand at attention during a ceremony for their comrade Mehmet Yalcin Nane who was killed by Islamic State militants on Thursday, at a military base in Gaziantep, Turkey, July 24, 2015. Turkish warplanes pounded Islamic State targets in Syria and police detained hundreds of suspected militants across Turkey on Friday, a sign that Ankara may have shed its hesitancy in taking a front-line role against jihadist fighters. Turkey has long been a reluctant partner in the U.S.-led coalition against

Islamic State ups rhetoric against Ankara

Following a Turkish-American deal allowing US warplanes to use Incirlik Air Base in the fight against the Islamic State, the terrorist group has lashed out at the ruling AKP government.

Has press freedom fallen victim to AKP’s Syria policy?

Has the Turkish government once again tried to silence a journalist, this time one who has drawn links between the AKP government's Syria policy and terror attacks by Islamic State in the country?

A waiter carries two cups of Turkish coffee at a coffee shop in Istanbul October 19, 2007. Turks are turning their backs on traditional Turkish coffee as they acquire a taste for the cappuccinos and espressos served at global coffee chain outlets opening up across this economically booming Muslim country. Picture taken October 19, 2007. To match feature TURKEY-COFFEE REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY) - RTX7D

After 500 years, Turkish coffee percolates in popularity

On the brink of oblivion about a decade ago, Turkey’s ancient coffee culture is revived by a vibrant new generation of entrepreneurs and young consumers.

Nuke deal won't change Iran's approach to region

In the aftermath of the JCPOA, Iran and other regional powers are seeking to engage, but will likely pursue policies to strengthen positions ahead of anticipated talks.

Turkish tanks move on a road outside the southeastern Turkish town of Silopi, near the Iraqi border, October 9, 2008. A senior Iraqi Kurdish official warned Turkey on Thursday against stationing troops inside Iraq and said such a move would not stop cross-border raids by Kurdish guerrillas. REUTERS/Stringer (TURKEY) - RTX9D1P

Is Ankara headed toward all-out war with Turkey’s Kurds?

Unless a deus ex machina like the United States enters into the equation between the Turkish government and the PKK, the clashes between the sides will continue.

A demonstrator holds a portrait of Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK)'s jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan during a march in solidarity with him in Diyarbakir, Turkey, August 1, 2015. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTX1MOBH

The $55 billion cost of abandoning the Kurdish peace process

The economic burden of the Kurdish conflict was one of the government’s key arguments when it launched the Kurdish peace process in 2013, but today, Ankara seems to be braving a hefty economic bill for the sake of its political interests.

A hairdresser cuts the hair of a customer at Suleymansah refugee camp in Akcakale in Sanliurfa province, Turkey, June 11, 2015. REUTERS/Osman Orsal

- RTX1G4C9

NGO finds work for Syrian refugees in Turkey

Rizk, a nongovernmental organization affiliated with the Syrian Forum, has been able to secure jobs for many Syrian refugees in Turkey and now hopes to equip Syrians with the skills to rebuild their country when the war is over.

Crew members leave from a U.S. Navy P-3 Orion Maritime patrol aircraft after it landed at Incirlik airbase in the southern city of Adana, Turkey, July 25, 2015. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTX1LSLM

What's US really doing at Turkey's Incirlik Air Base?

It is still not clear what agreement has been reached on the use of the Incirlik Air Base by anti-IS coalition planes.

Demonstrators run away from riot police during protests against Monday's bomb attack in Suruc, in Istanbul, Turkey, July 24, 2015. REUTERS/Yagiz Karahan - RTX1LPYT

Turkey's culture of fear

A panic-stricken media generates public and financial insecurity in Turkey.