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Turkey

Turkey

May 3, 2026

Ankara 5:23 pm

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Zaidi

Analysis

Iraq’s Zaidi offers economic promise for Turkey but unknowns loom

Iraq’s prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, is expected to sustain growing economic and strategic ties with Turkey thanks to his business-oriented approach, though uncertainty over his political stance could test cooperation on sensitive issues.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Members of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), from the British Army's 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards, No. 2 Company, patrol along the buffer zone separating the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus and the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in the divided capital Nicosia on Feb. 17, 2026.

Turkey warns France over Cyprus troop deployment: What to know

A potential French deployment to Greek Cyprus comes amid Turkey’s growing concerns of strategic encirclement in the Eastern Mediterranean.

This aerial photograph shows Turkey's first floating natural gas production platform, "Osman Gazi," passing through the Bosphorus, in Istanbul, on May 29, 2025.

Turkey advances gas pipeline plan to northern Cyprus as East Med rivalry grows

The Turkish energy minister said the country's oil and natural gas pipeline operator, BOTAS, has started the engineering work for the pipeline.

Latest News

In first, Libya’s rival armies to join drill in Turkey: What to know

Cadets of the Saiqa Force (Special Forces) of the self-styled Libyan National Army affiliated with eastern strongman Khalifa Hifter take part in a graduation ceremony in tribute to the force's late commander, Wanis Bukhamada, in the eastern city of Benghazi, on Jan. 20, 2022.

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

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.

Analysis

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

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.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

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)

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 President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses a meeting of provincial election officials at the headquarters of his ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party in Ankara on January 29, 2019. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Erdogan basing campaign on ploy of 'fake it till you make it'

Candidates representing the ruling party in Turkey's upcoming local elections are depending heavily on the president's popularity, which appears to be waning.

Members of Taksim solidarity platform pose in front of a banner reading "Darkness will go, Gezi will stay" on March 11, 2019 during a press conference in Istanbul. - Turkish activists at the forefront of the mass 2013 anti-government protests on March 11, 2019, rejected "irrational" and "unlawful" indictment targeting prominent Turkish businessman Osman Kavala and 15 others. (Photo by Ozan KOSE / AFP) (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images)

Turkish activists decry indictment seeking life sentences for Gezi protesters

Opposition figures are accused of trying to force out President Recep Tayyip Erdogan by leading demonstrations to save a park, yet they say the charges are an attempt to sway public opinion ahead of elections this month

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif (L) and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu (R) sign a cooperation agreement before a joint press conference with Turkey's President and Iran's President at the Turkish presidential complex in Ankara on December 20, 2018. - The Turkish President held talks with Rouhani with Syria likely to dominate the agenda after the surprise US decision to withdraw. The meeting in Ankara had been arranged before US President stunned allies and American officials the day before w

Turkish-Iranian trade disappoints big time

Turkish-Iranian trade has declined to its lowest level in nine years despite political rapprochement, a preferential trade agreement and the use of local currencies in economic ties.

Is this the end of the Syrian Interim Government?

The resignation of Jawad Abu Hatab as prime minister of the Syrian National Coalition-backed Syrian Interim Government raises doubts about the future of the endeavor in light of advancements by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in Idlib province.

Syrian truckers fear for jobs as Turkish drivers cross border

Turkish trucks have been entering Syria through the recently opened Bab al-Salam crossing, to the protests of Syrian truckers and shippers.

Istanbul's first Kurdish film festival casts light on women issues

From Saturday Mothers whose sons went missing in the 1990s to homeless children whose parents have been killed, Kurdish films provide a grim reflection on the situation on the ground in Turkey.

People queue to buy vegetables at a tent set up by the Ankara metropolitan municipality in the Cankaya district of the Turkish capital, on February 13, 2019. - Confronted with persistently high inflation more than a month before local elections, Turkish authorities this week set up stands to sell vegetables at unbeatable prices in a bid to force markets to lower their prices. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Turkey's economy sinks into recession

Financial media say the Turkish economy is in recession, and Turkey refuses to renew the press cards of three German journalists.

Russian servicemen drive S-400 missile air defence systems during the Victory Day parade, marking the 73rd anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, at Red Square in Moscow, Russia May 9, 2018. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin - RC1D3531D5F0

Intel: How Russia is pushing weapons sale that has roiled US-Turkey relations

A member of Manbij Military Council gestures at a car in Manbij city, Syria December 29, 2018. Picture taken December 29, 2018. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC1EFBFDDC70

Russian forces will defend Manbij 'the minute Americans leave'

The Manbij Military Council and Russian commanders have made a verbal agreement over who will defend Manbij when the United States leaves, and Turkey is not part of the equation.

Can joint Turkey-Iran action against PKK be real?

Turkey’s wish for a joint operation with Iran against the outlawed Kurdish militants along the Turkish-Iranian border is back on the agenda once again, but how realistic is it? Experts believe it is not.

A truck is driven off a Turkish freighter, docked at Haifa port in northern Israel February 17, 2014. Three years after Syria plunged into violence, Israel is reaping an unlikely economic benefit. Exports from Turkey have begun to flow through Israel and across the Sheikh Hussein Bridge to Jordan and a few Arab neighbours. The trade is growing enough to encourage long-held Israeli hopes that the Jewish state can become a commercial gateway to the Arab world. Picture taken February 17, 2014. To match Insight

Why Turkey’s export rise is hard to sustain

A heavy reliance on imported inputs to manufacture goods for export casts a shadow on Turkey’s hype about headway in foreign trade.

How Turkey's local elections became 'matter of national survival'

The continuing deterioration of Turkey's economy and the fact that the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) has refrained from entering candidates in local elections in the country's west, where the HDP is supporting other opposition parties, could result in the ruling party’s loss of some larger cities, which could lead to early general elections.