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Turkey

Turkey

May 18, 2026

Ankara 11:55 pm

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Ships navigate the Bosphorus Strait on May 02, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. Since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war against Iran, forcing the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and together with the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, global shipping routes have been severely impacted. Soaring shipping costs, lengthening delivery times and less efficient routes have seen increased pressure on energy markets and supply chains worldwide. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Analysis

Why Turkey sees opportunity in Hormuz crisis to boost Middle Corridor

Ankara seeks to exploit transport disruptions from the Iran, Ukraine wars to push the corridor, but high costs, logistical bottlenecks and South Caucasus politics pose obstacles.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Mazloum Kobane, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during the pan-Kurdish "Unity and Consensus" conference in Qamishli in northeastern Syria on April 26, 2025.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander Kobane says Turkey visit ‘in the making,’ Ocalan meeting possible

The SDF commander-in-chief reflected on a fragile integration deal with Damascus, growing Kurdish backlash and ongoing talks with Turkey as questions mount over Rojava’s political future.

Mazloum Kobane

Mazloum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

Latest News

Turkey, Armenia to launch direct trade in normalization push: What to know

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.

New Turkey maritime draft bill fuels EastMed tensions with Greece, Cyprus

The helicopter of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lands on Abdulhamid Han drill ship, the fourth built by Turkey, in Mersin on Aug. 9, 2022, before being sent for gas exploration to an undisputed area in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Gazipasa.

Turkey's border reopening unlocks new sphere of influence in Syria

Turkish Red Crescent's cars and trucks cross the Turkish border as they leave the Syrian city of Tel Abyad on Oct. 19, 2019, in Akcakale, Turkey.

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

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu attends a foreign ministers meeting ahead of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit in Cairo February 4, 2013. The OIC summit will be held from February 6-7. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3DCET

Dear Minister Davutoglu, Please Don't Stir Up War

Shlomi Eldar writes a personal letter to Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, who recently wondered publicly why Assad didn’t respond to the attack on Syria attributed to Israel.

Shi'ite men attend an Ashura procession in Istanbul November 24, 2012. Ashura, the most important day in the Shi'ite calendar, commemorates the death of Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Mohammad, in the seventh century battle of Kerbala. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: ANNIVERSARY RELIGION) - RTR3ATPL

Turkey’s Shiites Fear Sectarian Realignment

Susanne Gusten examines concerns within Turkey’s Shiite community about Ankara’s sectarian regional alliances.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine Erdogan pose with Syrian refugee triplet brothers whose names are Recep, Tayyip and Erdogan as they visit a refugee camp near Akcakale border crossing on the Turkish-Syrian border, southern Sanliurfa province, December 30, 2012. REUTERS/Kayhan Ozer/Prime Minister's Press Office/Handout (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) ) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS

Declining Turkish Birth Rates Alarm Erdogan

The Turkish government is putting forward new family-planning initiatives in the context of a declining birth rate and Prime Minister Recep Tayyep Erdogan's opposition to abortion, writes Sibel Utku Bila.

ATTENTION EDITORS - VISUAL COVERAGE OF SCENES OF INJURY OR DEATH
A security officer stands after an explosion at the entrance of the U.S. Embassy in Ankara on February 1, 2013 in this picture provided by Milliyet Daily Newspaper. A suicide bomber killed a Turkish security guard at the U.S. embassy in Ankara on Friday, blowing the door off a side entrance and sending smoke and debris flying into the street. Ankara Governor Alaaddin Yuksel said the attacker was inside U.S. property when the explosives were d

Suicide Bombing Connected To Turkish Policies on Syria, Iran

To the extent Turkey is active in Middle Eastern politics, especially in Syria, and is a party to confrontation with Iran, all the "terror exports" of the Middle East will be heading to the Turkish market, writes Cengiz Candar.

Turkey's Prime Minister and leader of ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Tayyip Erdogan makes his address during his party congress in Ankara September 30, 2012. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR38LX3

Erdogan’s Constitutional Crisis

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s initiative to change Turkey’s constitution to support a presidential, rather than parliamentary, system, is encountering some opposition, writes Tulin Daloglu.

Journalists and activists participate in a rally calling for press freedom in central Ankara March 19, 2011. The recent arrest and jailing of some 10 journalists as part of investigations into Ergenekon, an ultra-nationalist, secularist network opposed to Prime Minister's Tayyip Erdogan's rule, has a triggered expressions of concern from the European Union, the U.S. and human rights groups about Ankara's commitment to media freedom and democratic principles. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST

Turkey Cannot Defend Record On Press Freedom

Kadri Gursel writes that by criminalizing any press article that seems sympathetic to the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK), the Turkish government worsens its image as a leading violator of press freedom.

Turkish police bomb experts inspect the site after an explosion at the entrance of the U.S. embassy in Ankara February 1, 2013. A suspected suicide bomber detonated explosives in an attack which killed two people at the U.S. embassy in Ankara on Friday, the provincial governor Alaaddin Yuksel told reporters. REUTERS/Stringer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3D81N

Terrorist Attack Linked To Turkey’s Syria Policies

Kadri Gursel argues that Revolutionary Peoples’ Liberation Party-Front [DHKP-C] suicide bombing at the U.S. Embassy in Ankara is a response to Turkey’s policies in Syria.

Footage from a video obtained by Reuters shows a man identified as al
Qaeda spokesman Suleiman Abu Gheith speaking into a camera, warning
American Muslims and opponents of American policy not to fly in
airplanes or live in tall buildings. The source who provided the video
to Reuters and a British Sunday newspaper said this and pictures of a
man identified as Osama bin Laden were filmed in March 2002. If
genuine, the film would provide the first proof that bin Laden survived
the U.S.-led onslaught on

Bin Laden Relative Arrested In Turkey Before Bombing

While there's no connection between the arrest of Osama bin Laden’s son-in-law, Suleiman Abu Gheith, days before the suicide bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Ankara, and the bombing itself, both incidents put the focus on Turkey’s role in combating terrorism, reports Tulin Daloglu.

Sheikh Moaz Alkhatib, President of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces and U.S. Vice-President Joe Biden (R) meet for bilateral talks during the 49th Conference on Security Policy in Munich February 2, 2013. Senior U.S., Russian and U.N. officials, along with the leader of the Syrian opposition, were all expected in Munich on Saturday, providing a rare opportunity for talks to revive efforts to end the civil war in Syria. REUTERS/Michael Dalder(GERMANY - Tags: MILITARY

Week in Review: Turkey Terror Attack; Syria Political Solution

Al-Monitor’s coverage and analysis of the terrorist attack on the US embassy in Turkey and the possibility of a new opening for a political solution to the Syrian crisis.

Turkish police forensic experts inspect the site after an explosion at the entrance of the U.S. Embassy in Ankara February 1, 2013. A suicide bomber killed a Turkish security guard at the U.S. embassy in Ankara on Friday, blowing the door off a side entrance and sending smoke and debris flying into the street. Ankara Governor Alaaddin Yuksel said the attacker was inside U.S. property when the explosives were detonated. The blast sent masonry spewing out of the wall of the side entrance, but there did not ap

Turkish Suicide Bomber Did Not Act Alone

Semih Idiz ponders some of the questions about the terrorist attack on the US embassy in Ankara, such as who provided the explosives and was there any support from outside Turkey?

U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Francis Ricciardone (L, with white hair) speaks to media outside of the U.S. Embassy in Ankara February 1, 2013. A suicide bomber from a far-left group killed a Turkish security guard at the U.S. embassy in Ankara on Friday, blowing the door off a side entrance and sending smoke and debris flying into the street. The attacker blew himself up inside U.S. property, Ankara Governor Alaaddin Yuksel said. The blast sent masonry spewing out of the wall and could be heard a mile away. REU

The Ankara Bomber: A Pro-Assad Communist

Mustafa Akyol profiles Ecevit Şanlı and the outlawed People's Revolutionary Liberation Army-Front (DHKP-C), one of Turkey's infamous Marxist-Leninist terror organizations, responsible for the suicide bombing at the US Embassy in Ankara on Feb. 1.

Journalists and their supporters march during a protest against the arrests of journalists in Istanbul April 14, 2011. Journalists in Turkey marched in protest after police arrested 10 reporters and writers. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR2L7R3

Turkey: No Country for Journalists

Semih Idiz writes that the Turkish government needs a sense of urgency to address the lack of press freedom.