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Turkey

July 9, 2026

Ankara 8:07 pm

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Trump 'undecided' on Turkey's F-35s as Congress seeks answers on S-400

Top Democratic lawmakers say the ball is in Ankara’s court on rejoining the US-led F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program, but suggest that Turkey offshoring its Russian-made S-400 system won’t be enough.

Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan (R) shakes hands with Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian during his visit in Yerevan on July 19, 2025. (Photo by KAREN MINASYAN / AFP) (Photo by KAREN MINASYAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Feature

Armenia's Pashinyan keeps Iran close while wooing Trump, Turkey and Azerbaijan

As Yerevan pursues normalization with Turkey and Azerbaijan and backs a US-led transport corridor, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is working to reassure an increasingly assertive Iran that its interests won't be threatened.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (not shown) for bilateral talks at Beştepe Presidential Compound during the NATO Summit on July 08, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. Leaders from NATO's 32 countries, plus NATO allies like Ukraine, gathered in the Turkish capital to discuss a range of issues involving spending targets, defense industrial production, and support for Ukraine, among other topics. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Trump declares MoU with Iran 'over' as Hegseth cancels trip to Israel

Trump said diplomacy with Tehran was “a waste of time” after renewed attacks around Hormuz, as US defense chief reportedly cancels Israel visit.

Latest News

Explainer

Why Trump bid to lift CAATSA sanctions on Turkey faces complicated path

US President Donald Trump walks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a state arrival ceremony at the Bestepe Presidential Complex for the annual NATO Summit on July 7, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey.

Analysis

Trump's F-35 push for Turkey runs into CAATSA — and Israel

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) welcomes US President Donald Trump (R) upon his arrival on Air Force One at Etimesgut Air Base near Ankara, on July 7, 2026, before attending the 36th NATO Heads of State and Government Summit. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)

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

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

The Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 drone is pictured on Dec. 16, 2019, at the Gecitkale military air base near Famagusta in the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Turkey’s ambitious drone carrier project dogged by uncertainties

Keen on becoming a major sea power in the region, Turkey plans to convert an amphibious assault ship into a drone carrier, a project that raises operational and technical challenges for the Turkish navy.

Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) speaks to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) as they attend a press conference on Oct. 10, 2016, in Istanbul. Putin visited Turkey for talks pushing forward ambitious joint energy projects as the two sides try to overcome a crisis in ties.

Turkish-Russian ties marked more by rivalry than cooperation today

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan believed Russia would provide him leverage against the United States and Europe after Turkey’s ties with the West took a nosedive.

Protesters take part in a demonstration outside the US consulate in Istanbul on April 26, 2021, as a banner reads as 'An answer of USA's lies, close the US base in Incirlik', following the decision of US President Joe Biden to recognize the Armenian genocide in 1915-1917.

Turkey vows response to Biden's decision to recognize Armenian genocide

Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin did not provide details on a reaction, but he said it will be "of different forms, kinds and degrees."

People wave Armenian and US flags in front of the US embassy in Yerevan after US President recognized the 1915 killings of Armenians by Ottoman forces as genocide, on April 24, 2021.

Turkey’s reaction to Biden’s recognition of Armenian genocide more bark than bite for now

Turkey's foreign ministry said the US president's proclamation opened "a deep wound" that undermines Turkish-US ties, yet President Recep Tayyip Erdogan did not immediately respond.

Mor Gabriel Monastery

Court case against priest evokes bitter memories for Turkey’s Assyrians

Turkey’s tiny Assyrian community views a jail term handed to an Assyrian priest on “terrorism charges” as an official strong-arming tactic, while Assyrians around the world call for dismissal of the case.

Catholicos Garegin II, the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, attends a ceremony commemorating the 105th anniversary of the massacre of 1.5 million of Armenians by Ottoman forces in 1915, at the Tsitsernakaberd memorial in Yerevan on April 24, 2020.

Turkish talk of reconciliation angers Armenians on 106th anniversary of genocide

Turkey has warned the United States that President Joe Biden's expected characterization of the mass killings of the Ottoman Armenians in 1915 as a genocide will derail Turkish-Armenian reconciliation and further damage US-Turkish ties. Armenians say there is no reconciliation process to speak of.

Turkish Cypriot police stand before a portrait of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the disputal coastal town of Varosha, in Famagusta, Cyprus, Nov. 15, 2020.

Erdogan furious as his Islamic ambitions stumble in Turkish Cyprus

A Turkish Cypriot court ruling that reins back on Quranic courses comes as a poignant message to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Cypriot Turks are unwilling to sign up to his quest to raise “devout generations.”

Armenia's President Serzh Sargsyan (3rd L) and US Vice President Joe Biden (C) cross themselves during a prayer service commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide at the National Cathedral on May 7, 2015, in Washington, DC.

US-Turkey relations to be tested by possible Armenian genocide recognition

US President Joe Biden is reportedly preparing to recognize the 1915 mass killings of Armenians as genocide Saturday in a move that could further strain troubled US-Turkey relations.

A sign reads "Social distance 1.5m" next to the pool of a hotel on June 19, 2020, at Lara district in Antalya, a popular holiday resort in southern Turkey. The novel coronavirus pandemic has hit Turkey's tourism industry, the backbone of the country's economy.

Turkey’s tourism sector fears another disastrous year

Apprehension is growing in Turkey that its tourism sector, a vital hard-currency earner, might fail to recuperate in 2021 amid a new peak in the coronavirus pandemic.

Turkish Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan gives a press conference following her meeting with US Secretary of Commerce n Ankara, on Sept. 10, 2019.

Erdogan fires trade minister amid scandal, reshuffles cabinet

In a pair of midnight decrees Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan dismissed Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan over an alleged nepotism scandal and began a long-rumored cabinet reshuffle.

YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images

Gold mining company to file $1B claim against Turkey over halted project

Canadian mining company Alamos Gold announced Tuesday it would seek $1 billion from Turkey after mining concessions expired for a controversial project in the nation’s northwestern Canakkale region.

Turkish President and leader of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters during a political meeting of his ruling party the AKP, in Ankara, March 24, 2021.

Turkey’s ruling Islamists dogged by mounting corruption claims

Allegations of government corruption are adding to public anger as the economy continues to decline.