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Turkey

Turkey

September 15, 2026

Ankara 12:20 am

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People swim next to the Russian-flagged cargo ship OMSKIY-107, which was attacked off the Black Sea coast and eventually ran aground off the shore of the Sile district, Istanbul, Sept. 3, 2026.

Why Turkey has few options to protect Black Sea shipping

The Russia-Ukraine drone war is hitting Turkish commercial interests, exposing the limits of Ankara’s ability to protect shipping while remaining outside the conflict.

Fighters loyal to the Houthi authorities gather during a rally to recruit more fighters in Sanaa on Sept. 10, 2026.

Analysis

Saudi Arabia's Houthi crisis tests alliances with Trump, Turkey and Pakistan

As the Houthis tighten their grip on the Bab al-Mandeb, Saudi Arabia is turning to new regional alliances while Washington resists calls to intervene.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Latest News

Turkey’s defense giants court Egypt at Alamein Airshow: What to know

El Alamein International Airshow

Russia to give Turkey preferential fertilizer access amid Hormuz supply crunch

In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hold a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Bishkek on September 1, 2026. (Photo by Kristina Solovyova / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

Culture

Turkish ceramicist Leyla Borovali shapes Aegean heritage into clay

Leyla Borovali at her studio overlooking the Aegean

Analysis

With Hurjet test, Turkey seeks defense dominance beyond drones

TAI Hurjet

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

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 soldiers patrol on the Turkish-Syrian border in Ceylanpinar, southern Sanliurfa province January 28, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTR3D2ZA

Turkey’s Syrian Dilemma

Turkey is struggling with a Syria policy that has served only to prolong the conflict, as Ankara finds itself at odds with Paris over both Mali and Syria, writes Semih Idiz.

A pro-Kurdish demonstrator covers her face as riot police prevent protestors from marching, at Taksim square in central Istanbul February 15, 2012. Supporters of the pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) held a protest to mark the 13th anniversary of the capture of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CRIME LAW) - RTR2XWBQ

Turkish Opposition Party Criticizes Kurdish Initiative

Turkish opposition leaders claim Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s talks with imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan lack transparency and a clear endgame, writes Tulin Daloglu.

A gendarme soldier stands in front of protesters as a Turkish flag with a portrait of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey, flutters outside Silivri prison, some 70 km (43.5 miles) west of Istanbul, during the trial of a shadowy-right wing group taking place in the heavily-guarded prison, October 23, 2008. The trial of Ergenekon, a shadowy right-wing group, resumed in Turkey on Thursday on charges of trying to topple Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's government. REUTERS/Fatih Saribas (TURKEY) - R

Is the Turkish Military Getting a Fair Trial?

Tulin Daloglu questions whether the Turkish military is getting fair treatment.

A Turkish soldier takes up his position near the border with Syria at the Turkish border town of Ceylanpinar, Sanliurfa province January 25, 2013. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: MILITARY POLITICS CONFLICT) - RTR3CXC6

Suicides Add to Turkish Army’s Troubles

Sibel Utku Bila writes that the rise of suicides in the Turkish army is a sign of deeper problems.

Turkish Interior Minister Idris Naim Sahin (C) gestures while visiting a relief shelter campsite for earthquake victims, set up at a stadium, in Ercis October 29, 2011. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (TURKEY - Tags: DISASTER SOCIETY POLITICS) - RTR2TDXF

Kurds Welcome Change of Turkish Interior Minister

Kadri Gursel writes that Kurdish and other opposition groups are pleased with the replacement of Idris Naim Sahin as Turkish interior minister.

A Turkish riot police stands guard at the entrance of a courthouse in Istanbul February 25, 2010. Turkey's political and military leaders meet on Thursday as a storm gathers over a coup plot investigation against the armed forces which is threatening stability and investor confidence in the EU-candidate country. The most senior detainees, retired Air Force Commander Ibrahim Firtina and ex-navy chief Ozden Ornek, are brought to the court for questioning on Thursday. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POL

Selek Case a Travesty For Turkish Judiciary

Cengiz Candar describes the case and conviction of Pinar Selek as a low point for the Turkish judicial system.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (L), Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamel Amr (C) and Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi attend a news conference after a meeting regarding the Syrian crisis, in Cairo September 17, 2012. Saudi Arabia stayed away from a meeting on the Syria crisis convened by regional powers on Monday, setting back a forum grouping Iran - President Bashar al-Assad's main Middle East ally - and his leading opponents in the region. The "contact group" of Egypt, Iran, Turkey a

How Iran Lost Turkey’s Islamists

Mustafa Akyol explains the deterioration in Turkish-Iranian relations in the past three years, mostly as a result of differences over Syria.

Actress Songul Oden (C), who plays the main character in the Turkish soap opera "Noor", waves as she leaves after her visit to an Islamic orphan house in Beirut September 8, 2008. The show which flopped when first broadcast in its native Turkey three years ago has taken the Arab world by storm, provoking a flood of Gulf Arab tourists to Turkey that even includes royalty. Picture taken September 8, 2008. REUTERS/Hussam Shbaro (LEBANON)

Arabs Soak Up Turkish Soap Operas

Semih Idiz writes about the popularity of Turkish soap operas in the Arab world, and the reaction these shows are provoking in Turkey.

Kurds demonstrate against the conditions of detention of jailed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan during a protest in Strasbourg April 4, 2012. Hundreds of demonstrators protested in support of Ocalan, who was captured on February 15, 1999, and is currently serving a life sentence in Turkey. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST)

Turkey Cannot Solve PKK Terror Without Solving Kurdish Issue

Kadri Gursel writes that the current talks between the Turkish government and Abdullah Ocalan, the imprisoned head of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), cannot disentangle the problem of PKK terrorism from a political solution to Turkey's Kurdish issue.

Supporters of the Saadet (Felicity) Party burn an Israeli flag as they shout anti-Israel slogans during a protest in Istanbul, December 2, 2012. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Chill to Remain in Turkey-Israel Ties

Tulin Daloglu observes that the Israeli elections are unlikely to produce any change in Israeli-Turkish ties.

Employees of the state-run South Oil Company (SOC) join a new oil storage tank to the oil pipelines near the southern city of Basra January 14, 2013. The head of the state-run South Oil Company said the new facility will add a capacity of one million barrels to the existing 5.5 million barrels available. REUTERS/Atef Hassan (IRAQ - Tags: ENERGY CIVIL UNREST)

Iraqi Kurds Press Ahead With Pipeline Plans

Despite protests from Baghdad, the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq is moving ahead with plans to develop the infrastructure for an oil pipeline to Turkey, reports Abdel Hamid Zebari.

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

Whispers of Change In Turkey's Syria Policy

Tulin Daloglu reports on how, beneath the rhetoric of Turkey's hard line on Syria, there are signs that Ankara might be willing to call on Syria's opposition to show greater flexibility in dealing with the Syrian government.