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Turkey

Turkey

June 13, 2026

Ankara 12:18 am

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Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides (2nd L) and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron (C) review the honor guard at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia on April 23, 2026, ahead of a meeting on the sidelines of a European summit.

Explainer

Turkey slams France-Cyprus military pact as East Med rivalries deepen

Ankara says a defense deal between France and the Republic of Cyprus risks upsetting the island’s delicate balance, as defense ties among Cyprus, Greece, Israel and France deepen.

Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missile launching system is displayed at the exposition field in Kubinka Patriot Park outside Moscow on Aug. 22, 2017 during the first day of the International Military-Technical Forum Army-2017.

Analysis

As Trump admin drops Halkbank case, S-400 last big hurdle in US-Turkey ties

The move eases a key source of friction with Turkey ahead of a NATO summit in Ankara.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Latest News

Explainer

Turkey-Israel tensions flare over Syria, Lebanon, East Med: What to know

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan buttons up his jacket during a press conference after the conclusion of the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg on November 23, 2025.

Explainer

Turkey names new envoys to Iran, Oman, Qatar in regional reshuffle

Aamir QURESHI / 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

Oil worker Namik Aliyev stands next to a billboard of Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev (L) and his father late President Haidar Aliyev, as he waits for a helicopter on the island of Chilov in the Caspian Sea, about 70 km (44 miles) east of Baku, January 23, 2013. Aliyev, 32, like the country of Azerbaijan itself, has oil in his blood. His father and grandfather both worked in oil production, an industry which dates back to the 19th century in Azerbaijan and contributes more than half of the country's gro

Turkey-Azerbaijan relations still strong

Although Azerbaijan is warming its relations with Russia and Iran, Ankara still remains the most pivotal ally for Baku.

Gultan Kisanak (C), co-leader of Turkey's pro-Kurdish opposition Peace and Democracy Party (BDP), makes a speech on the killing of three female Kurdish activist during a demonstration in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, January 10, 2013. Three female Kurdish activists including a founding member of the PKK rebel group were shot dead in Paris overnight in execution-style killings condemned by Turkish politicians trying to broker a peace deal. REUTERS/Sertac Kayar (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3

Time running out for Turkey-PKK peace process

The AKP government’s stalling of required steps for peace and a political solution with the Kurds increases the likelihood of controlled violence.

Black Palestinians shrug off racism

Racist taunts toward Gaza’s African minority are not uncommon, despite centurieslong African migration to Palestine.

A flame rises from a pipeline at Tawke oil field near Dahuk, 400 km (245 miles) north of Baghdad May 9, 2009. Iraq's largely autonomous Kurdish region said on Friday it would start exporting oil next month, but the Oil Ministry in Baghdad cast doubt on the plan, denying it had given them permission to use national pipelines. Picture taken May 9, 2009. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari (IRAQ ENERGY POLITICS) - RTXFDTF

How independent is the Iraqi-Kurdish pipeline to Turkey?

Turkey can be instrumental in brokering a grand bargain on oil policy that affirms Iraqi sovereignty while assuring the Kurdistan Region of Iraq’s contribution to export growth.

How did Turkish media 'lynch' Kurdish singer?

The late Kurdish singer Ahmet Kaya was awarded the Presidential Medal of Honor after his life was ruined by Turkey’s “deep state” and mainstream media 14 years ago.

A general view of Dubai's cityscape September 25, 2013. A stampede by competing apartment buyers in Dubai this week may have obscured signs that Dubai's latest real estate boom is more restrained than the last one, which pushed the government close to default. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Tags: REAL ESTATE BUSINESS CITYSCAPE) - RTX145A9

The Al-Monitor Debate on Gulf Cities

The Wall Street Journal reports on the Al-Monitor debate on Gulf cities; former Israeli, Palestinian negotiators differ on whether Palestinians should recognize Israel as a Jewish state; hope for Syrian bishops' release; a new Al-Monitor design.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (R) helps Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif to stand during a news conference in Ankara November 1, 2013. Turkey and Iran said on Friday they had common concerns about the increasingly sectarian nature of Syria's civil war, signalling a thaw in a key Middle Eastern relationship strained by stark differences over the conflict. Davutoglu expressed his appreciation to Zarif at the start of the news conference for travelling to Turkey despite suffering from b

Turkey-Iran Talks Can Begin To Defuse Syrian Tragedy

Discussions between the foreign ministers of Turkey and Iran reflect a serious departure from the polarization; especially on Syria & between the two regional powers.

AKP Trips on Islamic Tweets

Religious rhetoric by Justice and Development Party elites over marginal or irrelevant issues often seem unnecessary and divisive.

Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) fighters stand in formation in northern Iraq May 14, 2013. The first group of Kurdish militants to withdraw from Turkey under a peace process entered northern Iraq on Tuesday, and were greeted by comrades from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), in a symbolic step towards ending a three-decades-old insurgency. The 13 men and women, carrying guns and with rucksacks on their backs, arrived in the area of Heror, near Metina mountain on the Turkish-Iraqi border, a Reuters witness sa

Turkey’s Militant Left Treads On 'New' Roads

With its roots in armed rebellion against the state, the Turkish and Kurdish militant left looks for ways of waging political battles under a new banner.

Veiled MPs Set Milestone in Turkey

The end of headscarf restrictions in Turkey will deprive the Justice and Development Party of the “victimhood” narrative and further expose the party’s authoritarian leanings.

Turkey's ruling Ak Party (AKP) lawmakers Nurcan Dalbudak (C) and Sevde Beyazit Kacar (R) attend the general assembly wearing their head scarves at the Turkish Parliament in Ankara October 31, 2013. Four female lawmakers from Turkey's Islamist-rooted ruling party wore their Islamic head scarves in parliament on Thursday in a challenge to the country's secular tradition. The last time a lawmaker attempted to wear the head scarf in parliament in 1999 she was expelled from the assembly. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TUR

Turkey Crosses Threshold On Islamic Headscarves

Turkey is breathing a sigh of relief after four female AKP deputies wearing headscarves to the parliament's general assembly caused only minor grumbling from the staunchly Kemalist opposition.

Al-Moussawi Says Iraq Can Be'Bridge' to Syria Solution

In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Ali Al-Moussawi, top media adviser to Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki, discusses the Geneva II Syria conference and Iraqi-Turkish relations.