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

Turkey

Turkey

September 18, 2026

Ankara 1:41 am

15°C

Traders work at their desks on the floor of the Borsa Istanbul

Turkey detains finance executives amid market turmoil

Several prominent Turkish finance executives were swept up by authorities on Thursday amid efforts to contain a market rout that has exposed strains in the country’s investment-fund industry.

Vyacheslav PROKOFYEV / AFP via Getty Images

Turkey's Erdogan to run for 'final' third term in 2028, adviser says

If Turkey's parliament votes to move the next election up during President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s second term, he could constitutionally run for third.

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)

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 President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he delivers a speech following a cabinet meeting, in Ankara, on June 9, 2020.

Turkey’s opposition faces Erdogan’s ire as economic crisis muddles election timetable

Opposition parties are under growing pressure as Turkey waits to see if Recep Tayyip Erdogan will call early elections despite skyrocketing prices.

Turkey economy

Turkish inflation hits highest level under Erdogan's rule

Turkey’s consumer inflation is bound to increase further in the coming months after reaching 36% in 2021, with even bigger numbers recorded in the producer sector.

A nurse prepares a syringe with the Sinovac's COVID-19 coronavirus vaccine during a vaccination campaign in the village of Oguzlar, a hundred of kilometres away from Ankara on July 8, 2021.

Turkey rolls out homegrown vaccine amid surge in Omicron cases

Turkish health officials claim the vaccine Turkovac is efficient against Omicron, while experts warn of a lack of data.

ALEJANDRO PAGNI/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey's Erdogan says he'll visit Saudi Arabia in February

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's planned visit to Saudi Arabia comes as Ankara seeks to mend ties with several Gulf countries.

Chechnya's leader Ramzan Kadyrov casts his ballot as he votes during Russia's presidential election at a polling station in the settlement of Tsentoroy, outside Grozny, March 18, 2018.

Why Turkey is in crosshairs of Chechen leader

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s latest threats to Ankara have betrayed the undercurrent tensions between Ankara and Moscow that have been simmering for a while.

A customer shops for alcoholic beverages at a supermarket ahead of a 17-day nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, in Istanbul on April 29, 2021.

Turkey cracks down on bootleg alcohol ahead of New Year celebrations

Following news of bootleg-related deaths, the Interior Ministry launched Operation Alcohol across the country, while critics say the government uses these high-profile operations to demonize alcohol consumption.

Syria Kurds

Turkey’s attack on Syrian Kurds aims to deepen intra-Kurdish rift

The Christmas day attack on members of the Syrian Revolutionary Youth marks a new level of escalation in Ankara's ongoing military campaign against Kurdish groups linked to the US-supported autonomous administration in northeast Syria.

Turkey lira

Turks keep holding on to dollars as mistrust in Erdogan lingers

Ankara’s currency-defense scheme has stopped the lira’s nosedive for now, but there is no tangible sign that a return to the lira has begun to reverse the alarming dollarization in the country.

Ukrainian servicemen take part in the joint Rapid Trident military exercises with the United States and other NATO countries nor far from Lviv on Sept. 24, 2021, as tensions with Russia remain high over the Kremlin-backed insurgency in the country's east.

Turkey urges Russia to moderate demands on NATO over Ukraine

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is offering to mediate the crisis, but its not clear Turkey has enough leverage to do so effectively.

Women hold a banner with the picture of Deniz Poyraz who was killed at Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Izmir headquarters, June 19, 2021.

Turkey’s pro-Kurdish party seeks justice for murdered party volunteer

The Peoples’ Democratic Party charges that the prosecutors are reluctant to fully investigate the links of the health worker who attacked the party’s office in June.

Syria Idlib

Currency crisis threatens Turkey's Syria strategy

Turkey’s economic turmoil might challenge Ankara's grip over opposition-held areas in Syria, where in-house rivalries among the armed factions over financial resources have escalated.

Women shop bread at a market in Ankara on Dec. 20, 2021.

Bread prices ring alarm bells in Turkey

For low-income households, bread and its price have become all the more important now that their purchasing power has melted amid the slump of the Turkish lira and surging inflation.