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Turkey

July 9, 2026

Ankara 4:52 pm

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Trump 'undecided' on Turkey's F-35s as Congress seeks answers on S-400

Top Democratic lawmakers say the ball is in Ankara’s court on rejoining the US-led F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, but suggest that Turkey offshoring its Russian-made S-400 system won’t be enough.

Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan (R) shakes hands with Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian during his visit in Yerevan on July 19, 2025. (Photo by KAREN MINASYAN / AFP) (Photo by KAREN MINASYAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Feature

Armenia's Pashinyan keeps Iran close while wooing Trump, Turkey and Azerbaijan

As Yerevan pursues normalization with Turkey and Azerbaijan and backs a US-led transport corridor, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is working to reassure an increasingly assertive Iran that its interests won't be threatened.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (not shown) for bilateral talks at Beştepe Presidential Compound during the NATO Summit on July 08, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. Leaders from NATO's 32 countries, plus NATO allies like Ukraine, gathered in the Turkish capital to discuss a range of issues involving spending targets, defense industrial production, and support for Ukraine, among other topics. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Trump declares MoU with Iran 'over' as Hegseth cancels trip to Israel

Trump said diplomacy with Tehran was “a waste of time” after renewed attacks around Hormuz, as US defense chief reportedly cancels Israel visit.

Latest News

Explainer

Why Trump bid to lift CAATSA sanctions on Turkey faces complicated path

US President Donald Trump walks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a state arrival ceremony at the Bestepe Presidential Complex for the annual NATO Summit on July 7, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey.

Analysis

Trump's F-35 push for Turkey runs into CAATSA — and Israel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) welcomes US President Donald Trump (R) upon his arrival on Air Force One at Etimesgut Air Base near Ankara, on July 7, 2026, before attending the 36th NATO Heads of State and Government Summit. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Canada, Turkey launch free trade talks on NATO summit sidelines

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney (R) is welcomed by Turkey's Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek upon arrival at Esenboga Airport to attend the 36th NATO Heads of State and Government Summit in Ankara on July 7, 2026. (Photo by Muhammed Abdullah Kurtar / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)

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 and Turkish Cypriot flags wave next to a drilling tower 25 km (16 miles) from Famagusta April 26, 2012. Turkish Cypriot Leader Dervis Eroglu and Turkey's Energy Minister Taner Yildiz attended a ceremony marking the start of joint gas and oil exploration works in northern Cyprus between Turkey's state-owned energy company TPAO and the Turkish-Cypriot administration. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (CYPRUS - Tags: POLITICS ENERGY BUSINESS) - GM1E84Q1HIQ01

Greek Cyprus calls for arrest of Turkish drilling crew

Ankara has vowed to continue gas exploration activities in disputed waters near Cyprus after Greek Cypriot authorities issued arrest warrants for workers on Turkey's gas-exploration ship.

People gather during the funeral of Abdelbasset al-Sarout, 27, who died from wounds he sustained battling in northwest Syria, in the border town of al-Dana, Idlib, Syria June 9, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashaw - RC16B44F3FF0

The Syrian funeral that divided Turkey

A funeral ceremony for a controversial Syrian militant, known as “the singer of the revolution,” has sparked indignation in Turkey.

Supporters of pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) celebrate municipal elections results in Diyarbakir, Turkey, March 31, 2019. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar - RC1B0AFAA170

Will the AKP reinstate Kurdish peace talks to win Istanbul elections?

Ruling party officials have adopted the Kurdish issue as a campaign strategy in the upcoming Istanbul elections.

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - JUNE 01: People walk past election posters of AK Parti candidate Binali Yildirim (L) and CHP Party, candidate Ekrem Imamoglu (R) during campaigning in the re-run of the Istanbul mayoral election on June 01, 2019 in Istanbul, Turkey. Imamoglu won a narrow victory during the first mayoral election held in March, defeating the candidate from President Erdogan's Justice and Development Party (AKP). But Turkey‚Äôs election body annulled the result after claims of ‚Äúirregularities,‚Äù and Imam

Istanbul mayoral candidates to debate in rare TV face-off

Turkey will have its first major political debate since 2002 as the ruling party takes extraordinary measures ahead of the second vote for Istanbul mayor.

Garbage collectors look for recyclable waste at a dumping ground on World Environment Day at the outskirts of southeastern province of Diyarbakir, Turkey June 5, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC1546A27F00

Turkey becomes new dump for global plastic waste

Due to lax regulations, plastic scrap imports to Turkey have skyrocketed since 2018; why is the AKP letting the country turn into a global wastebasket?

Egyptian-Turkish trade: A love-hate relationship

Egypt's free trade agreement with Turkey ends in 2020, but it is unclear whether it will be renewed in light of the political antipathy between the two countries' leaders.

Turkey's Defence Minister Hulusi Akar talks to acting U.S. Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan during a NATO defence ministers meeting at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium February 13, 2019. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir - RC18F6D62DA0

Ankara plays down US ultimatum on S-400

Despite the US announcement that Ankara will be excluded from the F-35 fighter jet program if it goes ahead with its purchase of a Russian missile system, Turkish officials continue to behave as if Washington is bluffing.

A column of armoured Turkish military vehicles drives on a patrol along a road in the de-militarised zone in Syria's northern Idlib province near the town Saraqib on March 8, 2019. - In September 2018, Syrian rebel backer Turkey and regime ally Russia inked a deal to set up a buffer zone in northern Syria. Russia halted an imminent regime offensive many feared could lead to the Syrian conflict's worst bloodbath yet, in exchange for which Turkey was to remove jihadists from the edges of the region. (Photo by

Turkey’s risky route in Idlib

Turkey is struggling to maintain a balance with Russia as it takes action to block the Syrian army at Idlib.

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his meeting with heads of foreign companies on the sidelines of the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF-2019) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 7, 2019. Yuri Kochetkov/Pool via REUTERS - RC1E84F20B40

Beneath tough exterior, Putin may be ready to deal on Iran

Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to hold all the cards in the region, but is Moscow ready to show its hand?

Egypt's hand appears in play behind scenes in Sudan

The head of the Sudanese Transitional Military Council has visited Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, raising questions about Cairo’s role in Sudanese affairs.

French President Emmanuel Macron waves to someone in the crowd as he and U.S. President Donald Trump conclude their joint news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, U.S., April 24, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - HP1EE4O1E9LAN

US Syria envoy says ‘no role’ for Europe in proposed safe zone

The United States has a “general” deal in place to establish a safe zone in northeastern Syria, the Trump administration’s top Syria policy official said, but the effort will not include European countries.

Ekrem Imamoglu, Istanbul mayoral candidate of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), shakes hands with a vendor at a vegetable market in Istanbul, Turkey, May 29, 2019. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC1350151BB0

AKP's Istanbul campaign sinks to new lows

Turkey's ruling AKP has insinuated that the opposition's winning mayoral candidate for Istanbul Ekrem Imamoglu is secretly Greek to discredit his campaign in a move that seemed to backfire.