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Turkey

Turkey

May 11, 2026

Ankara 5:23 am

14°C

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 06: A man poses for a photograph in front of the newly unveiled, Turkish made intercontinental ballistic missile Yildirimhan at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. The International Defence and Aerospace Exhibition, showcased Turkish and foreign companies new products and technology. The expo was dominated by UAV products as modern warfare increasingly shifts to drone and unmanned technologies. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Analysis

From drones to deterrence: Turkey's ICBM missile signals bigger ambitions

Turkey’s planned test of a 6,000-kilometer missile could boost Ankara’s defense industry prestige, strengthen its deterrence messaging and feed a powerful domestic narrative of technological self-reliance, but it also raises questions about cost, timing and NATO protection.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

MURAT KOCABAS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Culture

How ‘dog mom’ vacuum cleaner ad sparked culture war in Turkey

A Mother’s Day advertisement featuring a “dog mom” triggered a backlash from conservative media, government officials and regulators, turning a soft consumer campaign into a flashpoint over motherhood, declining birth rates, stray dogs and even antisemitism.

Latest News

Turkey, Japan launch defense industry partnership with eye on drones

People look at a drone on display at the Baykar exhibit at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Saudi FM in Turkey as Ankara, Riyadh step up coordination amid Iran war

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara, May 6, 2026.

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

Members of the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) inspect the damage at their headquarters after it was hit by Turkish airstrikes in Mount Karachok near Malikiya, Syria April 25, 2017. REUTERS/ Rodi Said - RTS13V4H

White House still quiet on Turkish airstrike in run-up to Erdogan visit

The general US reactions to Turkish airstrikes in Syria have been loud, but the White House has yet to utter a single rebuke as Turkey's president packs for Washington.

A money changer counts Turkish lira bills at a currency exchange office in Istanbul January 24, 2014. A global flight from emerging market assets gathered pace on Friday, sending the Turkish lira to a record low and setting global shares on course for their worst week this year. European shares fell, especially in firms exposed to emerging markets, and a sell-off on Wall Street was poised to extend into a second day as investors worried about the impact of slower growth in China, U.S. monetary policy and po

Can Turkey disprove IMF's dismal economic growth forecast?

The International Monetary Fund expects the Turkish economy to further slow down in 2017, but Ankara believes it can disprove the forecast.

Kurdish fighters fire shells towards what they said were Islamic State strongholds in Tel Abyad of Raqqa governorate after they said they took control of the area June 15, 2015. Syrian Kurdish-led forces said they had captured a town at the Turkish border from Islamic State on Monday, driving it away from the frontier in an advance backed by U.S.-led air strikes that has thrust deep into the jihadists' Syria stronghold. The capture of Tel Abyad by the Kurdish YPG and smaller Syrian rebel groups means the Sy

Trump's generals wonder: What comes after Raqqa?

A senior US official says Turkish bombing of Syrian Kurdish forces is adding a new level of complexity to US efforts to defeat the Islamic State and retake Raqqa.

A Turkish soldier on an armoured military vehicle surveys the border line between Turkey and Syria, near the southeastern city of Kilis, Turkey, March 2, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTS115OV

Is Turkey trying to disrupt Raqqa operation?

In the lead-up to President Erdogan's Washington visit next month, Turkey's recent air attacks in Syria and Iraq might be a message that Turkey intends to play a more involved role in those countries.

A picture taken on April 7, 2017 at sunset shows a view of Hatay (aka Antakya) in southern Turkey. / AFP PHOTO / OZAN KOSE (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images)

YPG, Turkish forces exchange fire on Syrian border

The diplomatic fallout from Turkey’s deadly airstrikes against Kurdish militants is growing as Turkey reacts angrily to US rebukes.

Members of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe take part in a debate on the functioning of democratic institutions in Turkey, at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France, April 25, 2017. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler - RTS13SUB

Turkey faces scrutiny after Erdogan's 'win'

The Council of Europe’s decision to resume monitoring procedures against Turkey indicates the West's resolve not to validate Ankara's referendum results.

Members of the Sinjar Resistance Units (YBS), a militia affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), stand in the village of Umm al-Dhiban, northern Iraq, April 29, 2016. They share little more than an enemy and struggle to communicate on the battlefield, but together two relatively obscure groups have opened up a new front against Islamic State militants in a remote corner of Iraq. The unlikely alliance between the Sinjar Resistance Units, an offshoot of a leftist Kurdish organisation, and Abdulkhal

Kurds call on US to set up no-fly zone after Turkish attacks

Expect US-Turkey tensions to rise after the Turkish air force attacked Kurdish militants in Iraq’s Sinjar region and northeastern Syria just as the US-led coalition presses its offensive against IS in Raqqa.

Can Erdogan juggle Trump and Putin at the same time?

Erdogan’s expectations from the United States and Russia are high, but his hopes may be misplaced again.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan arrive for a news conference following their meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, October 10, 2016. REUTERS/Osman Orsal TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTSRP0B

Russia, Turkey to talk tariffs

It looks like Ankara’s retaliatory tariffs on Russian wheat will bring the two parties together in another attempt to compromise on sanctions and import taxes.

Human rights activists hold portraits of victims during a demonstration to commemorate the 1915 mass killing of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, at Sultanahmet square in Istanbul, Turkey April 24, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTS13OEL

Erdogan offers 'condolences' during Armenian genocide events

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a message of support to an Armenian genocide commemoration in Istanbul in a radical departure from previous government policy.

Carnations and today's copies are seen in the newsroom of Cumhuriyet newspaper, an opposition secularist daily, in Istanbul, Turkey, November 1, 2016. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTX2RBLF

How journalism became a crime in Turkey

The state's indictment against executives and journalists of Turkey’s Cumhuriyet daily constitutes an unprecedented legal scandal, indicating that criticism of the government is now considered a crime.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Turkey, April 17, 2017. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTS12NRL

Does Erdogan expect Trump to ditch Syrian Kurds?

US and Turkish presidents talk, agree to meeting in Washington; Saudi-Iraqi ties hit Iranian ceiling; Turkey sees al-Bab as safe haven for displaced Syrians.