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Turkey

Turkey

April 28, 2026

Ankara 12:38 am

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Turkey's submarines and fast-attack craft ships participate in the live-fire phase of the Blue Homeland-2026 (Mavi Vatan) tactical military exercises in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, in Antalya on April 9, 2026.

Turkey’s military spending jumps to $30B, leads Mideast growth in 2025

Newly released data shows Ankara’s military spending hit $30 billion, while Saudi Arabia remained the region’s top spender and Israel’s outlays declined in 2025.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan hosted the third meeting of the foreign ministers of Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on the margins of the 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum, on April 17, 2026.

Analysis

Why Saudi Arabia, Egypt are wary of Turkey’s proposed 4-way defense pact with Pakistan

The proposed framework faces major hurdles and fault lines, ranging from NATO constraints to Israeli opposition and weak military integration.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

CORLU, TURKEY- MARCH 2: A B model of Bayraktar AKINCI TİHA (Assault Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) in the sky on March 2, 2022 in Corlu, Turkey. (Photo by Baykar Press Office/dia images via Getty Images)

Turkey’s Baykar tests K2 swarm kamikaze drones for first time: What to know

Baykar tested its K2 and new loitering drones, featuring AI-driven swarm capabilities and the ability to operate under GPS jamming.

Latest News

Trump envoy Barrack’s embrace of 'strong leaders' sparks fury in Turkey

US Ambassador to Turkey Thomas Barrack attends a meeting with President Donald Trump and President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Oval Office at the White House on Sept. 25, 2025, in Washington, DC.

How Syria's border opening with Iraq redefines Turkey-Kurd balance

Members of Iraq's security forces stand guard on the the al-Rabia border crossing with Syria on April 20, 2026.

Analysis

Italy’s TB3 drone deal signals turn toward Turkey amid US-NATO tensions

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni shake hands during the press conference following their meeting at Villa Doria Pamphilj, on April 29, 2025, in Rome, Italy.

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

A firefighter watches as a damaged building is demolished in a controlled manner during the ongoing search operation for survivors and victims at the site of a collapsed building in the city of Izmir on November 2, 2020, after a powerful earthquake struck Turkey's western coast and parts of Greece. - Rescue workers were searching eight buildings in Izmir despite dwindling hope for survivors, as the death toll of a powerful magnitude earthquake which hit western Turkey rose to 69. The 7.0-magnitude quake has

Izmir residents look for shelter, answers in earthquake aftermath

As Izmir residents recover from a 7.0 earthquake that hit Turkey’s third-largest city Friday, engineers look for ways to reduce structural damage in future natural disasters.

A member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) carries an automatic rifle on a road in the Qandil Mountains, the PKK headquarters in northern Iraq, on June 22, 2018. - Hundreds of Iraqi Kurds marched Friday to protest Turkish strikes against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) after Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Ankara would press an operation against its bases. (Photo by SAFIN HAMED / AFP) (Photo credit should read SAFIN HAMED/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey turns up heat on PKK in Iraqi Kurdistan

Iraqi Kurdish forces have deployed to a mountainous area long used as a camp ground by PKK militants, adding to the pressure the militants face from Turkey’s cross-border military operations in the region.

IZMIR, TURKEY - OCTOBER 30: Emergency services personnel search a collapsed building for survivors after a powerful earthquake struck on October 30, 2020 in Izmir, Turkey. Six people have been killed and more than two hundred were injured after an earthquake struck the Aegean Sea off the coast of Turkey's Izmir Province. More than twenty buildings were destroyed in Izmir, Turkey's third largest city. (Photo by Usame Ari/Getty Images)

Israel offers aid to Turkey after earthquake

Israel's defense minister has announced emergency aid to Turkey after an earthquake rocked Izmir and Samos.

This picture shows destroyed car and collapsed buildings after an earthquake in the island of Samos on October 30, 2020. - A powerful earthquake hit Greece and Turkey on October 30, 2020, causing buildings to collapse and a sea surge that flooded streets in the Turkish resort city of Izmir. Greek public television said the quake also caused a mini-tsunami on the eastern Aegean Sea island of Samos, damaging buildings. The US Geological Survey said the 7.0 magnitude quake was registered 14 kilometres (8.6 mil

At least 12 dead after powerful earthquake rocks Turkey's western coast

The 6.6 magnitude earthquake injured more than 400 people, Turkey's disaster agency said.

NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 21: Sameh Shoukry, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt, listens during a UN Security Council meeting concerning nuclear non-proliferation, during the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters, September 21, 2017 in New York City. The most pressing issues facing the assembly this year include North KoreaÕs nuclear ambitions, violence against the Rohingya Muslim minority in Myanmar, and the debate over climate change. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Egypt slams Turkish role in Syria

Egypt has recently condemned Turkey’s role in Syria, which prompted condemnation on the part of Ankara, fueling the already existing tensions between the two countries.

French coroners carry the second body of one of the three people killed at the Notre-Dame de l'Assomption Basilica in Nice, southern France, on October 29, 2020 after a knife-wielding man slitted the throat of at least one of the victims, in what officials are treating as the latest jihadist attack to rock the country. - The assailant, who was shot and wounded by police, was identified as Brahim Aouissaoui, a 21-year-old Tunisian migrant who arrived in Italy in late September and later travelled to France,

Turkey joins chorus of condemnation of Nice murders

After three people were killed by a suspected Islamist extremist in France’s coastal city of Nice, Turkey's president took a break from his row with Paris to condemn the violence.

This picture taken on October 26, 2020 in Istanbul shows a French car Renault in the Istiklal street. - Turkish President joined calls for a boycott of French goods, on October 26, 2020, ramping up a standoff between France and Muslim countries over Islam and freedom of speech. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP) (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)

Erdogan’s boycott call against France more grandstanding than economic threat

The pressing economic grievances of the Turkish public and deep-rooted business links with France are likely to far outweigh any Turkish enthusiasm to boycott French goods.

Syrians take part in the funeral of 10 fighters with the Turkey-backed Faylaq al-Sham rebel faction in Syria, in the northwestern city of Idlib, on October 26, 2020, following their death in a Russian air strike. - Air strikes by Syrian regime ally Russia killed 78 fighters from the turkey-backed Faylaq al-Sham faction when they targeted a training camp in the Jabal Duwayli area in Idlib province, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. (Photo by Mohammed AL-RIFAI / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED AL-RIFAI/AF

Are attacks on Syrian opposition signal from Moscow to Ankara?

As Turkey conducts simultaneous campaigns in different theaters — including assistance to Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict — Moscow must be tempted to exploit the turbulence to extract concessions from Ankara.

Construction labourers work on the top of a new mosque at Taksim square in Istanbul on January 14, 2019. (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

Erdogan’s economic policies show growing disconnect from working class

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan aims for social justice by distributing the loot to his favorite powerful elites at the expense of hardworking blue- and white-collar professionals.

Civilians drive along a road behind a Turkish military convoy through the village of Iblin, near Ariha in Syria's rebel-held northwestern Idlib province on October 20, 2020 after Turkish forces vacated the Morek post in Hama's countryside. - Turkey started withdrawing from one of its largest outposts in northwest Syria encircled for the past year by Syrian regime forces, a war monitor and a pro-Ankara rebel commander said. The outpost in Morek is Turkey's largest in the northwest province of Hama, which is

How Turkey’s withdrawal from Morek post affects opposition factions in northeast Syria

Turkish forces withdrew from their observation post in the city of Morek, raising many questions about the fate of Turkish-backed rebels in the surrounding area.

Turkish academic in Canada caught up in Ankara's anti-Kurdish sweep

Cihan Erdal, a Ph.D. candidate at Carleton University and permanent resident in Canada, has been held since late September on alleged terror links.

Turkish President and leader of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses his party's group meeting at the Turkish Grand National Assembly in Ankara, on October 28, 2020. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

The Takeaway: Is Erdogan’s threat to Syrian Kurds linked to US election?

Turkish president also calculates risk of escalation in Idlib; a primer on the Idlib ceasefires; plus: four more quick takes on Syria and Iraq.