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Turkey

Turkey

August 25, 2026

Ankara 5:12 pm

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A Turkish soldier from the 1st Border Regiment Command looks out over the border wall to Syria during alert drills at a military outpost on the Turkey/Syria border on March 2, 2017 in Kilis, Turkey.

Analysis

Why Turkey sees Israeli strikes in Syria as warning over its military role, Mecca Pact

Ankara views Israel’s latest strikes in Syria as part of a broader effort to curb Turkey’s military influence in Damascus and a challenge to its regional defense partnerships.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Turkey/Syria border

Analysis

Turkey bets on US deconfliction as Israel widens Syria red lines

As Washington pushes a new deconfliction mechanism between Turkey and Israel, the Jewish state shows little incentive to accept tighter constraints on its freedom of action in Syria, experts say.

Ezgi Akin

Rina Bassist

By Ezgi Akin , Rina Bassist

Latest News

Analysis

Israel fears Turkey’s Syria ambitions and doubts Trump will stop them

ANKARA, TURKEY - JULY 7: U.S. President Donald Trump (L)shakes hands with with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) during a formal arrival at the Bestepe Presidential Palace during the NATO summit on July 7, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. Leaders from NATO's 32 countries, plus NATO allies like Ukraine, gathered in the Turkish capital to discuss a range of issues involving spending targets, defense industrial production, and support for Ukraine, among other topics. (Photo by Emrah Gurel - Pool/Getty Images)

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Turkey seeks Interpol Red Notices for Netanyahu over Gaza flotilla

Murat Kocabas / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Turkey signals restraint as war of words with Israel escalates over Syria

Burhaanettin Duran

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

Bayraktar drone

Turkey’s defense exports reach record levels in 2022, Erdogan says

Turkey’s president is touting the country's defense exports, which have reached a record high.

Erdogan Putin

Analysis

Will Erdogan and Assad soon meet to bury the hatchet?

Erdogan’s opportunism, Putin’s weakness, Iran’s distraction, Israel’s vigilance all complicate Syrian endgame.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images

Fury in Turkey as convicted wife killer murders third victim

The story of a two-time wife killer who killed a third woman after his conditional release from prison speaks volumes about why femicide remains rampant in Turkey.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar is seen seated at the start of the North Atlantic Council meeting on the final day of the NATO defense ministers' meeting at the NATO headquarters, Brussels, Belgium, Oct. 13, 2022.

Turkish defense chief warns Syrian rebels against ‘provocation’

As the Turkish president eyes a meeting with his Syrian counterpart, the Turkish defense chief warns Ankara-backed armed groups against “provocations” amid ongoing Syrian protests against the Damascus-Ankara thaw.

Erdogan xi

Turkey spars with China over Uyghurs, but is it real?

Turkey’s opposition and some Uyghur activists remain doubtful on how committed Ankara is to defending the rights of the Uyghurs despite its recent spat with Beijing.

ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey's historic election could move up as Erdogan calculates

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is seeking a favorable vote schedule as he fights to extend his 20-year rule.

An armed Turkish security officer (L) stands guard near a gate as passengers walk past within a memorial ceremony on June 28, 2017 at Ataturk International airport in Istanbul, one year since the triple suicide bombing and gun attack by Islamic State (IS) jihadists. (OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

US slaps sanctions on Islamic State network in Turkey

The US Treasury Department designated four individuals and two entities accused of enabling the terrorist group’s recruitment and financial transfers.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the Sixth Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia, Astana, Kazakhstan, Oct. 13, 2022.

Erdogan presses for 'concrete steps' in Syria during call with Putin

President Erdogan tells his Russian counterpart Putin that the Syrian government needs to be "constructive" for "concrete results" in Syria.

Cavusoglu

First call between Turkish, Israeli FMs overshadowed by Ben-Gvir

Turkey's foreign minister told his newly appointed Israeli counterpart that the Israeli security minister's visit to the Jerusalem holy site was "unacceptable."

Protesters raise yellow flags showing the face of Abdullah Ocalan, the leader of the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK) -- currently prison in Turkey, and the red-star flag of the National Liberation Front of Kurdistan (ERNK - Eniya Rizgariya Netewa Kurdistan), during a demonstration calling for his release and condemning recent Turkish strikes on Kurdish areas, in the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli in northeastern Syria on Dec. 6, 2022.

Turkey’s overtures to Assad all about crushing Syrian Kurds’ autonomy

Turkey’s security establishment remains immutably opposed to the consolidation of any form of Kurdish autonomy in Syria that would mirror Kurdish gains in neighboring Iraq.

A man counts Turkish liras at a currency exchange office, Istanbul, Turkey, July 29, 2020.

Turkey's inflation slows most in December in a boost to Erdogan

Facing crucial elections in spring, the Turkish government is trying to take credit for curbing inflation, even though the steep decline in the annual rate owes mostly to a favorable base effect.

This picture taken from the Mount of Olives shows a view of Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and its Dome of the Rock, Old City, Jerusalem, Jan. 2, 2023.

UAE, Saudi, others condemn Israeli minister’s visit to Jerusalem holy site

Ben-Gvir’s visit to the Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif could hurt the new far-right Israeli government's relations with Arab states and Turkey.