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Turkey

Turkey

June 16, 2026

Ankara 2:45 pm

28°C

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attends the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, on May 22, 2026.

Turkey’s Fidan heads to Moscow as S-400 sanctions issue returns to fore

The visit comes weeks before Turkey hosts NATO leaders, on the sidelines of which Ankara hopes to reach a deal with Washington over CAATSA sanctions over its purchase of Russian S-400s.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York on Sept. 19, 2023.

Analysis

Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence

The latest Erdogan-Netanyahu clash underscored how Turkey-Israel tensions have grown beyond the Palestinian issue and into a wider regional rivalry spanning Syria, Lebanon, Iran and the eastern Mediterranean.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Yasin AKGUL / AFP via Getty Images

Feature

Turkey’s World Cup return clouded by politics, dawn kickoffs

Turkey finally has the World Cup moment it waited 24 years for, but much of the country will either be asleep for it or arguing over efforts to claim it.

Ezgi Akin

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

Latest News

Explainer

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

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.

Analysis

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

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.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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 Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (R) and Kurdistan Regional President Masoud Barzani pose for the media before their meeting in Istanbul April 19, 2012. REUTERS/Stringer/Pool (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR30XVX

Turkey’s Missed Opportunities With the Kurds

Disarray in Turkish foreign policy is not allowing Turkey to play its rightful role in supporting Kurdish national unity.

An injured journalist is filmed and helped by his colleagues during clashes between riot police and May Day protesters in central Istanbul May 1, 2013. Turkish riot police clashed with thousands of May Day protesters in Istanbul on Wednesday, firing water cannon and tear gas at crowds that tried to break through barricades to reach the city's main square, witnesses said. The incidents followed the pattern of recent years, when May Day demonstrations in Turkey's largest city have often been marked by clashes

Gezi Cleansing In Turkish Media

Many journalists lost their jobs and suffered from police violence following the shifting of Prime Minister Erdogan’s hard-line reactions to media freedoms.

An Indonesian soldier from the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) uses his walkie-talkie as he stands near a picture of Lebanon's Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah in the southern Lebanese village of Adaisseh July 24, 2013. Europe's decision to blacklist Hezbollah's "military wing" was triggered by the Lebanese movement's growing role in Syria, but the partial ban may have little practical impact due to fears of destabilising Lebanon and the wider Middle East. REUTERS/Ali Hashisho (

How Will Terror List Decision Affect EU-Hezbollah Ties?

The European Union’s decision to add Hezbollah’s military wing to the list of terrorist organizations could compromise key security coordination between the two sides.

A protester opposing Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi holds a sign reading "Depart" near riot police during a protest against the new judicial law in front of Egypt's Shura Council in Cairo May 25, 2013. Egypt's highest court ruled on Saturday that parts of a revised election law setting out terms for a parliamentary election were unconstitutional, casting fresh doubt over a poll that has already been delayed. The Shura Council has approved, Saturday, the referral of the contentious amendment proposal of th

Is the Middle East Rejecting Radicalism?

The world should not miss the opportunity for stablility and progress offered by the Middle East's rejection of radicalism.

Syria's President Bashar al-Assad (R) welcomes Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan at Damascus airport January 17, 2011. REUTERS/Sana (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTXWOQH

Erdogan’s Assad Problem

Could Syrian President Bashar al-Assad outlast Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in office?

Members of the media are fired upon by a water cannon during protests at Kizilay square in central Ankara, June 16, 2013. The unrest, in which police fired teargas and water cannons at stone-throwing protesters night after night in cities including Istanbul and Ankara, left four people dead and about 5,000 injured, according to the Turkish Medical Association. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MEDIA) - RTX10Q1Q

Shooting the Arbiter in Turkey: How Sabah Fired Its Ombudsman

The former ombudsman of Sabah tells his story of the firing that has shaken Turkish journalism and generated international criticism of Turkey’s approach to the media.

Supporters of Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan wave flags, hold banners and shout slogans as they wait for his arrival at Esenboga Airport in Ankara June 9, 2013. Still by far the country's most popular politician, Erdogan has pressed ahead with government business as usual. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX10HD0

Erdogan’s New Chief Adviser is No Joke

Prime Minister Erdogan's appointment of Yigit Bulut to focus on the transition to a presidential system has generated controversy and criticism.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters in Ankara June 9, 2013. Still by far the country's most popular politician, Erdogan has pressed ahead with government business as usual. REUTERS/Umit BEKTAS (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX10HTJ

European Court Presses Erdogan on Free Speech

A landmark ruling by the European Court of Human Rights is putting pressure on Turkey’s prime minister to abandon his many libel cases against journalists.

Boats sail on the river Nile in Cairo June 12, 2013. Most of Egypt's population live clustered around the Nile valley and delta, and the river is both a vital resource for the country's citizens, and a potent national symbol. In a recent dispute with Ethiopia over the construction of a dam upstream, Egypt's foreign minister Mohamed Kamel Amr underlined the country's reliance on the river's waters: "No Nile - no Egypt," he said. Picture taken June 12, 2013. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS SOCIET

Egypt's New Rulers Face Crisis With Ethiopia Over Nile

Egypt has sent delegations to Ethiopia to push for a compromise on the dam project and sharing the Nile's waters.

A man checks an apartment on a damaged building at the site of a blast in the town of Reyhanli in Hatay province, near the Turkish-Syrian border, May 13, 2013. Syria's information minister has blamed Turkey's government for deadly car bombings near the Syrian border and branded Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan a "murderer", state-run Russian TV company RT reported on Monday. It said he repeated a denial of Syrian involvement in car bombings that killed 46 people on Saturday in the Turkish border town of Reyhan

Turkey’s Syria Policy in Shambles Over Support for Jihadists

A host of misjudgments by the Erdogan government about Syria, including reliance on radical Islamists, has led to new headaches for Turkey.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (C) greets members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) during a meeting at the Turkish parliament in Ankara June 25, 2013. Turkish anti-terrorism police detained 20 people in raids in the capital Ankara on Tuesday in connection with weeks of anti-government protests across the country, media reports said. The unrest began at the end of May when police used force against campaigners opposed to plans to redevelop a central Istanbul park. The protest spiralled i

Turkey Needs Unified Vision for Middle East

Turkey needs a unified approach for governance at home before it can rebuild its foreign policy.

Boys wave Palestinian flags during a protest near the border between Israel and the northern Gaza Strip June 7, 2013. The protest was part of the Global March to Jerusalem initiative, marking the 46th anniversary of Israel's capture of East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST ANNIVERSARY) - RTX10F3F

Hamas Concerned About Tamarod Movement in Gaza

Hamas is worried that the Egyptian “rebellion” movement will migrate to Gaza.