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Turkey

June 13, 2026

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Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides (2nd L) and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron (C) review the honor guard at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia on April 23, 2026, ahead of a meeting on the sidelines of a European summit.

Explainer

Turkey slams France-Cyprus military pact as East Med rivalries deepen

Ankara says a defense deal between France and the Republic of Cyprus risks upsetting the island’s delicate balance, as defense ties among Cyprus, Greece, Israel and France deepen.

Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missile launching system is displayed at the exposition field in Kubinka Patriot Park outside Moscow on Aug. 22, 2017 during the first day of the International Military-Technical Forum Army-2017.

Analysis

As Trump admin drops Halkbank case, S-400 last big hurdle in US-Turkey ties

The move eases a key source of friction with Turkey ahead of a NATO summit in Ankara.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Latest News

Explainer

Turkey-Israel tensions flare over Syria, Lebanon, East Med: What to know

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan buttons up his jacket during a press conference after the conclusion of the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg on November 23, 2025.

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

Supporters of ruling AK Party wave Turkish flags at an election kiosk of their Istanbul mayoral candidate Binali Yildirim in Istanbul, Turkey, June 3, 2019. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1E72A54000

Erdogan’s election machine is rusty and worn out

The campaign that Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party (AKP) are waging for the rerun of the Istanbul mayoral race is far from promising a victory, showing how the AKP — once a formidable election machine — has aged into an exhausted body with waning skills.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, accompanied by his wife Emine Erdogan, greets his supporters during the sixth Congress of the ruling AK Party (AKP) in Ankara, Turkey, August 18, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC163D352FB0

AKP vote share has fallen more than election results show

The ruling Justice and Development Party is not as popular as it would like observers and voters to believe going into the rerun of elections in Istanbul.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan holds a news conference on the final day of the G20 leaders summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina December 1, 2018. REUTERS/Andres Stapff - RC1A7F61AE00

G-20 summit could be last exit before all-out US-Turkey crisis

Turkey doesn’t know “how to reply” to US Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan’s letter, a senior security source tells Al-Monitor.

Turkish and Turkish Cypriot flags wave next to a drilling tower 25 km (16 miles) from Famagusta April 26, 2012. Turkish Cypriot Leader Dervis Eroglu and Turkey's Energy Minister Taner Yildiz attended a ceremony marking the start of joint gas and oil exploration works in northern Cyprus between Turkey's state-owned energy company TPAO and the Turkish-Cypriot administration. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (CYPRUS - Tags: POLITICS ENERGY BUSINESS) - GM1E84Q1HIQ01

Greek Cyprus calls for arrest of Turkish drilling crew

Ankara has vowed to continue gas exploration activities in disputed waters near Cyprus after Greek Cypriot authorities issued arrest warrants for workers on Turkey's gas-exploration ship.

People gather during the funeral of Abdelbasset al-Sarout, 27, who died from wounds he sustained battling in northwest Syria, in the border town of al-Dana, Idlib, Syria June 9, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashaw - RC16B44F3FF0

The Syrian funeral that divided Turkey

A funeral ceremony for a controversial Syrian militant, known as “the singer of the revolution,” has sparked indignation in Turkey.

Supporters of pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) celebrate municipal elections results in Diyarbakir, Turkey, March 31, 2019. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar - RC1B0AFAA170

Will the AKP reinstate Kurdish peace talks to win Istanbul elections?

Ruling party officials have adopted the Kurdish issue as a campaign strategy in the upcoming Istanbul elections.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JUNE 01: People walk past election posters of AK Parti candidate Binali Yildirim (L) and CHP Party, candidate Ekrem Imamoglu (R) during campaigning in the re-run of the Istanbul mayoral election on June 01, 2019 in Istanbul, Turkey. Imamoglu won a narrow victory during the first mayoral election held in March, defeating the candidate from President Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP). But Turkey‚Äôs election body annulled the result after claims of ‚Äúirregularities,‚Äù and Imam

Istanbul mayoral candidates to debate in rare TV face-off

Turkey will have its first major political debate since 2002 as the ruling party takes extraordinary measures ahead of the second vote for Istanbul mayor.

Garbage collectors look for recyclable waste at a dumping ground on World Environment Day at the outskirts of southeastern province of Diyarbakir, Turkey June 5, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC1546A27F00

Turkey becomes new dump for global plastic waste

Due to lax regulations, plastic scrap imports to Turkey have skyrocketed since 2018; why is the AKP letting the country turn into a global wastebasket?

Egyptian-Turkish trade: A love-hate relationship

Egypt's free trade agreement with Turkey ends in 2020, but it is unclear whether it will be renewed in light of the political antipathy between the two countries' leaders.

Turkey's Defence Minister Hulusi Akar talks to acting U.S. Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan during a NATO defence ministers meeting at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium February 13, 2019. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir - RC18F6D62DA0

Ankara plays down US ultimatum on S-400

Despite the US announcement that Ankara will be excluded from the F-35 fighter jet program if it goes ahead with its purchase of a Russian missile system, Turkish officials continue to behave as if Washington is bluffing.

A column of armoured Turkish military vehicles drives on a patrol along a road in the de-militarised zone in Syria's northern Idlib province near the town Saraqib on March 8, 2019. - In September 2018, Syrian rebel backer Turkey and regime ally Russia inked a deal to set up a buffer zone in northern Syria. Russia halted an imminent regime offensive many feared could lead to the Syrian conflict's worst bloodbath yet, in exchange for which Turkey was to remove jihadists from the edges of the region. (Photo by

Turkey’s risky route in Idlib

Turkey is struggling to maintain a balance with Russia as it takes action to block the Syrian army at Idlib.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his meeting with heads of foreign companies on the sidelines of the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2019) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 7, 2019. Yuri Kochetkov/Pool via REUTERS - RC1E84F20B40

Beneath tough exterior, Putin may be ready to deal on Iran

Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to hold all the cards in the region, but is Moscow ready to show its hand?