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

Turkey

Turkey

June 20, 2026

Ankara 10:02 pm

21°C

This photograph shows a Turkish national flag at the Razi-Kapikoy border crossing with Iran next to a black flag on the Iranian side, following the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in eastern Turkey on March 2, 2026.

Analysis

Turkey eyes gains from US-Iran deal as Ankara balances Tehran, Washington

Turkey sees the US-Iran memorandum as a chance to reduce regional spillover risks, revive trade with Tehran and gain diplomatic breathing room.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

A Turkish police officers patrols at the scene of a motor-bike bomb explosion, next to a police station on Oct. 6, 2016, in Istanbul.

Turkey captures alleged ISIS-K media chief near Afghanistan-Pakistan border

The capture comes as Turkish authorities intensify raids against Islamic State networks following recent attacks and alleged plots.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Orthodox Patriarch of Bartholomew at the presidential complex, Ankara, Turkey, June 16, 2026.

Culture

Turkey’s Erdogan meets Orthodox patriarch amid push for reopening Halki Seminary

The meeting comes ahead of US President Trump’s expected attendance at next month's NATO leaders’ summit in Turkey, after Trump personally urged his Turkish counterpart to reopen the Halki Seminary.

Latest News

Turkey’s Fidan heads to Moscow as S-400 sanctions issue returns to fore

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attends the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, on May 22, 2026.

Analysis

Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York on Sept. 19, 2023.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Feature

Turkey’s World Cup return clouded by politics, dawn kickoffs

Yasin AKGUL / AFP via Getty Images

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

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

Are Turkey and Europe seeking a new kind of relationship?

Turkey’s EU membership bid has reached an impasse, but cooperation between Ankara and Brussels continues in key areas of mutual interest.

A man looks at newspapers at a kiosk in Diyarbakir, Turkey November 2, 2015. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday the nation had voted for stability in a parliamentary election that saw the AK Party he founded win almost 50 percent of the vote, and said the world should respect the result. REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov - GF20000042856

Is corruption in Turkey so commonplace even journalists are inured?

Despite strict rules and regulations, freebies and moonlighting have become the norm in Turkish media, and offenders go without any sort of legal or punitive action.

Turkey pays homage to 'ceramicist for the people'

The "Fureya Koral Retrospective" in Istanbul shows how a pioneering artist reinterpreted ceramics, a traditional Turkish craft, to create murals in the new republic.

The real reason Iranian media is fixated on Zarrab case

Reza Zarrab’s testimony in a US court is attracting the attention of Iranian media because he has been linked to an Iranian billionaire who siphoned off Iranian oil money in Iran's sanctions evasion scheme.

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) spokesman Talal Silo speaks during a press conference in Hukoumiya village in Raqqa, Syria June 6, 2017.REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC1543C159D0

SDF commander's claims of Turkish allegiance raise eyebrows

Talal Silo, the former spokesman of the Syrian Democratic Forces, claims to have defected to Turkey and continues to offer contradictory accusations that the US-backed group was established as a cover for US support for Kurdish terror groups.

A Syrian refugee woman walks between tents in Nizip refugee camp, near the Turkish-Syrian border in Gaziantep province, Turkey, November 30, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC1B34636AE0

Ankara pressed to explain $30 billion refugee bill

Turkey’s opposition is piling up pressure on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government to provide a transparent account of the $30 billion that Ankara says it has been spent on Syrian refugees.

US President Donald Trump shakes hands with with Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras following a press conference in the Rose Garden of the White House on October 17, 2017 in Washington, DC. / AFP PHOTO / MANDEL NGAN (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Will Erdogan address Greece's military upgrades during visit?

A US sale of F-16 fighter upgrade kits to Greece's outdated fleet could increase tensions with Turkey, or it could be offset by the Turkish president's historic visit to Athens this week.

Russian Kilo-class diesel-electric submarine Krasnodar sets sail in the Bosphorus, on its way to the Black Sea during a hazy morning, in Istanbul, Turkey, August 7, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1B0857E100

Turks accuse CIA of engineering failed coup

The arrest order Turkish prosecutors issued for Graham Fuller, a former CIA official, appears to be a Russian-Turkish joint production.

Israel 'will not blink' on Iranian missiles

The Israel Defense Forces set new red lines for Iran; Erdogan still waiting for Russian dividend on Kurds; Russia expands use of private military companies in Syria; the Islamic State and al-Qaeda at war in the Sinai Peninsula.

Iraqis fear earthquakes, terrorism could lead to dam catastrophe

Although the recent earthquakes did not cause serious damage to Iraq’s dams, specialists are calling for continuous maintenance to ensure they are not demolished in the future, leading to a disaster in Iraq.

Culture Alert: Fashion, books and photography in December

The Middle Eastern cultural calendar for the end of the year includes a book fair in Beirut, a modest-dress fashion event in Dubai and a cartoon biennial in Tehran.

Women join opposition police forces in Aleppo’s liberated areas

With the help of Turkish trainers, the first batch of policewomen graduated from the opposition’s National Police and Public Security Forces in the areas liberated during Operation Euphrates Shield in the countryside of Aleppo.