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

Turkey

Turkey

January 13, 2026

Ankara 3:46 am

-1°C

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian as they attend the 17th Summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization in Khankendi, Azerbaijan on July 4, 2025.

Turkey warns against foreign intervention in Iran as Trump mulls options

Ankara is wary of the consequences of potential US strikes on Iran, warning they could trigger wider regional instability.

Israel's Foreign Minister Eli Cohen gives a press conference in Larnaca on December 20, 2023 talking about a humanitarian aid corridor from the Mediterranean island to war-torn Gaza. (Photo by Elisa AMOURET / AFP) (Photo by ELISA AMOURET/AFP via Getty Images)

Interview

Gaza calm could revive East Med Forum, Israel-Jordan projects: Cohen

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Israeli Energy Minister Cohen estimated that the mega gas deal between Israel and Egypt would reinforce the peace treaty and pave the way for stronger security cooperation in combating Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated groups and Hamas.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) gestures as he welcomes Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman (R) during an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, on June 22, 2022.

Analysis

Amid Saudi-UAE rivalry, Turkey courts Riyadh without crossing Abu Dhabi

Turkey is moving closer to Saudi Arabia on key regional security files from Yemen to Gaza, while carefully avoiding a rupture with the United Arab Emirates.

Ezgi Akin

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

Latest News

Turkey's Fidan says Israel ties harden SDF stance as Syria clashes grow

ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images

Erdogan denies Turkey informed of US exile offer for Maduro prior to capture

ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Mideast nuclear energy goals tested as Turkey, Saudi Arabia eye breakthroughs

This photograph taken on April 26, 2023 shows the construction of the Russian-built Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant in Mersin Province. - Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will try to offset his absence from the campaign trail weeks before crucial elections by unveiling the nuclear plant by video link. (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo by OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Analysis

Turkey casts Israel’s Somaliland move as overreach, but Somalia’s fragility poses risks

Somalis celebrate the victory of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after he won the presidential run-off election during the celebration organized by the government in Mogadishu, on May 29, 2023.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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 pop star Gulsen performs during a concert in Aydin, Turkey on March 27, 2022.

Turkey hands pop star Gulsen jail sentence over religious schools joke

The sentence is widely seen as the epitome of the culture wars that the country has witnessed under Erdogan.

Armenia genocide

Turkey closes airspace to Armenia over 'Nemesis' monument

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the closure was in response to Armenia's controversial “Nemesis” monument that commemorates a revenge operation for the Armenian genocide.

Turkish President and People's Alliance's presidential candidate Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech during an election campaign rally in Ankara, on April 30, 2023.

Would Turkey’s Erdogan accept an election loss after recent comments?

Already divisive language has become more threatening as the May 14 polls loom, leading to fears for Turkey's democratic transition.

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Turkey inflation drops below 50% 11 days before elections

Though inflation has dipped, Turkey’s monthly consumer prices continue to rise amid a cost-of-living crisis.

Amberin Zaman webinar

What to expect in Turkey's elections: Live Q&A webinar

Leader of the Republican People's Party (CHP), Kemal Kilicdaroglu, and the presidential candidate of the Main Opposition alliance, speaks to supporters at a rally while campaigning for the presidential election on April 30, 2023 in Izmir, Turkey. CHP leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu is holding campaign rallies across Turkey ahead of the countries May 14, 2023 presidential and parliamentary elections. The Kilicdaroglu-led Nation Alliance is representing six opposition parties in next month's election against Presi

Turkey’s opposition warns against deepfakes ahead of fateful elections

As the presidential race heats up in the lead-up to Turkey's consequential elections, the country’s main opposition party accuses the government of plotting a cyberwar against Erdogan’s top rival.

A sign directs pedestrians towards the United States on January 16, 2019 in Tijuana, Mexico. Thousands of people from Mexico and Central America, many who arrived in caravans, hope to cross the border daily into America. The U.S. government is partially shut down as President Trump is asking for $5.7 billion to build additional walls along the U.S.-Mexico border and the Democrats oppose the idea. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Israel, Turkey, Saudi Arabia top MidEast recipients of US visas in 2022

Citizens from the MENA region received about 480,000 non-immigrant visas, or about 7% of the total 6.8 million visas issued globally.

An exterior view of the building of US Department of the Treasury is seen on March 27, 2020 in Washington, DC.

US, Turkey blacklist Syrian militants' financial facilitators

The new sanctions target members of US-designated terrorist groups Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and Katibat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad.

Supporters wave flags and chant slogans while waiting for the arrival of CHP Party presidential candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu during a campaign rally on April 30, 2023 in Izmir, Turkey.

Turkey’s Kilicdaroglu pulls ahead of Erdogan in latest polls as campaign heats up

As the latest polls show a close race against the opposition, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has returned to the hectic campaign trail and confronted his main rival Kemal Kilicdaroglu in the opposition stronghold city of Izmir.

BAKR ALKASEM/AFP via Getty Images

US does not confirm Turkey’s claim of killing Islamic State leader in Syria

The US administration said it had no information to support Ankara’s claim to have killed the Islamic State leader.

Turkey's Republican People's Party (CHP) Chairman and Presidential candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu speaks on the stage during a rally in Kocaeli, on April 28, 2023. - A sea of umbrellas and hoods at his feet, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, the Turkish opposition candidate who will challenge Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the polls on 14 May, smilingly promises "the return of spring". (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP) (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey election pledges foretell bigger budget deficit

A review of economic programs and a supplementary budget appear inevitable for the winner of Turkey’s May 14 elections.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (C) is welcomed by his Sudanese counterpart Omar al-Bashir (2nd-L) and diplomats upon his arrival in Khartoum on December 24, 2017, for a two-day-official visit. / AFP PHOTO / ASHRAF SHAZLY (Photo credit should read ASHRAF SHAZLY/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey's Erdogan treads cautiously on Sudan, wary of betting on wrong horse

Having avoided a crisis in its ties with Sudan after Bashir’s ouster, Ankara is now refraining from taking sides in an escalating conflict between the country’s military leaders.