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Turkey

May 15, 2026

Ankara 6:12 am

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Mazloum Kobane, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during the pan-Kurdish "Unity and Consensus" conference in Qamishli in northeastern Syria on April 26, 2025.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander Kobane says Turkey visit ‘in the making,’ Ocalan meeting possible

The SDF commander-in-chief reflected on a fragile integration deal with Damascus, growing Kurdish backlash and ongoing talks with Turkey as questions mount over Rojava’s political future.

Mazloum Kobane

Mazloum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.

Turkey, Armenia to launch direct trade in normalization push: What to know

The move removes a decades-old reexport mechanism routed largely through Georgia as Ankara and Yerevan step up normalization efforts.

The helicopter of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lands on Abdulhamid Han drill ship, the fourth built by Turkey, in Mersin on Aug. 9, 2022, before being sent for gas exploration to an undisputed area in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Gazipasa.

New Turkey maritime draft bill fuels EastMed tensions with Greece, Cyprus

Turkey’s draft maritime bill seeks to formalize Ankara’s claims in the Aegean, Eastern Mediterranean and Black seas, raising tensions with Greece and Cyprus over contested maritime boundaries and offshore energy rights.

Turkish Red Crescent's cars and trucks cross the Turkish border as they leave the Syrian city of Tel Abyad on Oct. 19, 2019, in Akcakale, Turkey.

Turkey's border reopening unlocks new sphere of influence in Syria

Turkey reopened the Akcakale-Tell Abyad crossing on Monday, ending an 11-year closure along the Syria border.

Latest News

Analysis

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

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)

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Culture

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

MURAT KOCABAS/Middle East Images/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

A person pays their respects at the Obelisk of Theodosius, the scene of the suicide bomb attack, at Sultanahmet square in Istanbul, Turkey January 13, 2016. Turkish authorities detained three Russian nationals suspected of links with Islamic State following a suicide bomb attack in Istanbul that killed 10 tourists, media reports said on Wednesday. A suicide bomber thought to have crossed recently from Syria killed nine German and one Peruvian tourists on Tuesday in Istanbul's historic Sultanahmet Square, a

Terrorism tops Turkish citizens’ list of concerns in 2015

A recent survey polled Turks and found that they are not united in their perception of the identity of terror suspects in the country.

A money changer holds Turkish lira banknotes next to U.S. dollar bills at a currency exchange office in central Istanbul April 15, 2015. Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci said on Wednesday the lira's slide to record lows was not a cause for concern and reflected global developments, arguing against forex intervention and saying the currency will find its own balance. He also told a meeting in Istanbul that he expected first quarter year-on-year growth of around 1.5 percent, and full year growth exceed

Dollar-needy Turkey tightens foreign currency rules

Desperate to stop the flight of foreign money, the Turkish government has tightened rules on how cash can be taken out of the country.

U.S. President Barack Obama meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) at the U.S. ambassador's residence during the World Climate Change Conference 2015 (COP21) in Paris, France December 1, 2015. Obama urged Turkey on Tuesday to reduce tensions with Moscow after the downing of a Russian warplane and to seal its border with Syria to choke off the supply of money and fighters to Islamic State militants. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTX1WOVR

Turkish-US ties face fresh turbulence over Iraq, Syria

Washington’s demand that Turkey withdraw troops from Iraq and the US alliance with Syrian Kurds are potential flashpoints in US-Turkish relations.

Water war could leave Turkish Cyprus high and dry

A fight over profits has disrupted the water supply from Turkey to Turkish Cyprus less than three months after a unique water pipeline was inaugurated, threatening to leave Turkish Cypriots with neither water nor vital financial aid from Ankara.

Could Iran-Saudi conflict provide Turkey 'graceful exit' from Syria?

Turkish reactions to the Jan. 2 execution of Saudi Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr are quite telling for the future of Ankara’s regional policy.

Kurds on hunger strike for bodies of dead relatives

Kurdish families have launched a hunger strike to get the bodies of relatives killed while fighting with the security forces in Turkey’s conflict-ravaged southeast.

The real problem with Erdogan's Hitler comment

The official "correction" of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s reckless reference to "Hitler’s Germany" reveals more about Erdogan's real agenda than the reference itself.

Sergei Bainetov (R), deputy chief of the Russian Armed Forces' flight safety service, and Nikolai Primak, Chairman of the Air Accident Investigation Commission, attend a news conference, dedicated to the crash of SU-24 fighter-bomber, a Russian warplane shot down by Turkey in November, in Moscow, Russia, December 21, 2015. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov - RTX1ZMGZ

Was Syria intervention worth it for Russia?

While Moscow's military involvement in the Syria crisis has led to an increasingly important role for Russia in regional and global politics, critics wonder whether or not the costs will outweigh the benefits.

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan (R) shakes hands with Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz during a luncheon ahead of the G20 summit in Belek in the Mediterranean resort city of Antalya, Turkey, November 14, 2015. REUTERS/Kayhan Ozer/Pool - RTS6ZYF

Has Turkey’s regional power grab come to an end?

Turkey is forfeiting its claims for regional supremacy by joining the Saudi-led Sunni alliance and making friendly overtures toward Israel.

Has Ankara abandoned Iraq’s Turkmens?

Shiite Turkmens of Iraq, feeling that Turkey has failed them, are fighting with Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units.

Christian Syrian refugee Ghassan Aleid displays his Syrian passport at a terminal at the Charles-de-Gaulle Airport in Roissy, France, October 2, 2015. After the efforts of the mayor of Le Mans and a family member, a doctor residing in Le Mans, France accorded travel visas, requested a year ago, for the family who fled the conflict in Syria. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe - RTS2S8H

Iraqis see fake Syrian passport as golden ticket to Europe

Iraqis are buying forged Syrian passports to try to increase their chances of winning asylum in European countries.

Armenia's President Serzh Sargsyan (L-R), Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko, Kazakhstan's President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Kyrgyzstan's President Almazbek Atambayev pose for a family photo during a meeting of the heads of state of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council at the Burabai resort near Astana, Kazakhstan, October 16, 2015. The meeting of ex-Soviet leaders, including Putin, have agreed to create a joint task force to defend external borders in crisis situat

First the Middle East, now Central Asia slipping away from Turkey

Having lost influence in the Middle East, Turkey finds itself increasingly isolated from Central Asia and the Caucasus after its dust-up with Russia in Syria.