Turkey - AL-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Turkey

Turkey

January 1, 2026

Ankara 6:48 am

-5°C

US President Donald Trump and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan gesture as they pose for a photo during a world leaders' summit on ending the Gaza war on Oct. 13, 2025 in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

Analysis

Trump-Erdogan ties pay off for Turkey in 2025 as Ankara pushes for F-35s

Leader-level diplomacy between Ankara and Washington produced selective gains but failed to break the deadlock over defense sanctions imposed for Turkey’s S-400 purchase.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Analysis

Iran threats, flattery, unresolved gaps: What Trump really gave Netanyahu at Mar-a-Lago

At their meeting at Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump heaped compliments on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu but offered few concrete achievements.

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

A picture taken at the port of Dilovasi, outside Istanbul, on June 20, 2019, shows the drilling ship Yavuz scheduled to search for oil and gas off Cyprus.

Turkey eyes offshore energy pact with Syria in 2026 amid East Med isolation

Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has offered up details on a deal with Syria that could unsettle regional rivals in the gas-rich Eastern Mediterranean.

Latest News

Somalia’s president heads to Turkey as Israel’s Somaliland recognition rattles region

This aerial view shows residents waving Somaliland flags as they gather to celebrate Israel's announcement recognizing Somaliland's statehood in downtown Hargeisa, on Dec. 26, 2025.

Australian LNG deal marks latest step in Turkey's energy diversification push

Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Analysis

Turkey's defense sector enters 2026 with naval progress — and unresolved vulnerabilities

Turkish naval forces patrol vessel TCG F 500 and an unidentified submarine (back) sail during a military naval parade on the Bosphorus in Istanbul on Oct. 29, 2023.

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 cargo ship sails out into the Bosphorus, Istanbul, Turkey, April 19, 2020.

Analysis

Will Turkey’s merchant class circumvent latest trade restrictions on Israel?

The Turkish government’s recent export restrictions against Israel will complicate their political relations, but even as bilateral trade declines, experts note that merchants on both sides will look for ways to circumvent the new measures.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Turkish Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek looks on before the press conference following the cabinet meeting held at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on August 21, 2023. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Can Turkey’s economic czar stick to belt-tightening after election loss?

The Turkish government hopes that its remaining four-year mandate will give it time to placate popular anger before the next polls.

Turkish cocaine bust

Lebanon-Venezuela kingpin detained in Turkey's 'third largest' cocaine bust

The Turkish Interior Minister reported some 1,340 pounds of cocaine seized in the operation, which also included the arrest of 13 people.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks to supporters at his party’s Istanbul mayoral candidate Murat Kurum's campaign rally, Istanbul, Turkey, March 29, 2024.

Turkey restricts exports of 54 products to Israel until Gaza cease-fire

As Israel pledged to retaliate, analysts believe the move is aiming to allay growing dismay among Turkey's Islamists for the government’s refusal to sever trade ties with the Middle Eastern country over the Gaza conflict.

Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan speaks during a press conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela in Caracas on Feb. 24, 2024.

Turkey to take ‘series of measures’ against Israel after Gaza aid drop denied

The Turkish foreign minister said the measures would be "implemented step by step, without delay," but did not specify the actions to be taken.

(L-R) Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi wave hands during the group photo session, a head of the Dialogue of Emerging Market and Developing Countries, on the sideline of the 2017 BRICS Summit in Xiamen, southeastern China's Fujian Province on Sept. 5, 2017.

Al-Monitor/Premise poll finds Biden's unpopularity in Mideast makes room for China, Russia to outshine US

Washington’s influence remains potent despite its perceived disengagement from the Middle East, but Russia and China are eagerly finding gaps to fill.

Workers tasked with putting out the fire in an oil well, set ablaze by retreating Islamic State (IS) jihadists, assemble a water pipeline in the town of Qayyarah.

Iraq plans to reopen own oil pipeline as talks to restart Kurdish route stall

The move to reopen the pipeline will irk the Kurdistan Regional Government, as it introduces a rival route to a section of the pipeline in Kurdistan that has been shut for a year and is a crucial economic source for the semi-autonomous region.

An undated image of the Kaan.

The long road ahead for Kaan, Turkey’s nascent fifth-generation fighter jet

Turkey’s aspiring ruler of the skies will need to overcome various challenges before it can truly become a fifth-generation fighter, analysts say.

Northern Cyprus tightens property sales rules amid influx of Russian money

Northern Cyprus seeks to tighten its laws on real estate purchases to foreigners amid allegations of Russian black money, Zionist plots and encouragement from Ankara.

A view from a hotel roof top of downtown Mogadishu close to the site of a double truck bombs in early November in Mogadishu on November 10, 2022.

At least two staff of Turkey-based aid group killed in explosion in Somalia

Turkey-based humanitarian organization says it was targeted deliberately.

Workers walk along at refinery No. 2 (Phases 2, 3) of the South Pars Gas-Condensate field.

Turkey, Iran launch talks on energy cooperation

The talks, aiming to enhance energy cooperation between the two countries, kicked off in Tehran.

Protesters demonstrate on Kibris Sehitleri Avenue in Izmir against the denial of Abdullah Zeydan's right to be elected and the handover of the mandate to AKP candidate Abdulahat Arvas, April 2, 2024.

Turkey’s election board reverses decision to block pro-Kurdish party's local win

Turkey’s high election board will unblock the pro-Kurdish party candidate’s election win amid protests in the country's Kurdish majority southeast.