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

Turkey

Turkey

May 7, 2026

Ankara 10:31 pm

11°C

People look at a drone on display at the Baykar exhibit at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Turkey, Japan launch defense industry partnership with eye on drones

The initiative could eventually lead to joint UAV development and production as Japan looks to expand drone capabilities amid regional tensions.

Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Ankara, May 6, 2026.

Saudi FM in Turkey as Ankara, Riyadh step up coordination amid Iran war

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan’s visit to Ankara comes amid rapidly expanding Turkish-Saudi coordination as the fallout from the Iran war reshapes Gulf security dynamics.

Latest News

Turkey, Armenia agree to restore medieval bridge in normalization push

A picture taken near Kars on Feb. 28, 2024 shows the ruins of a bridge over Arpacay river, the natural border between Turkey and Armenia.

Turkey hosts Kuwaiti FM as UAE's OAPEC exit fuels Gulf rift

Sabah Fidan

Analysis

Iraq’s Zaidi offers economic promise for Turkey but unknowns loom

Zaidi

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

Turkish peasant women sow poppy seeds for opium in Turkey, 10/16/1974.(Photo by Express/Archive Photos/Getty Images)

British archaeology falls prey to Turkey's nationalist drive

The decision to seize seed collections from the British Institute at Ankara are linked to the Turkish president's wider Islamo-nationalist campaign.

Men walk on a street of the village of Djojugh Marjanli in Azerbaijan's Jabrayil district which is said was damaged in shelling during the ongoing fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region, October 6, 2020. (Photo by TOFIK BABAYEV / AFP) (Photo by TOFIK BABAYEV/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey eyes economic gains in backing Azerbaijan against Armenia

Turkey and Azerbaijan often describe their relationship as “one nation, two states,” but their economic exchanges have remained relatively small despite their close political and ethnic bonds.

Car bombing kills more than a dozen in Syria's al-Bab

The town controlled by Turkish-backed Syrian rebel forces continues to experience violence.

Assad accuses Turkey of instigating Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

The hostilities have killed hundreds of people since late September.

A rocket launches from a S-400 missile system at the Ashuluk military base in Southern Russia on September 22, 2020 during the "Caucasus-2020" military drills gathering China, Iran, Pakistan and Myanmar troops, along with ex-Soviet Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus. - Up to 250 tanks and around 450 infantry combat vehicles and armoured personnel carriers will take part in the September 21 to 26 land and naval exercises that will involve 80,000 people including support staff. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP) (

Intel: Turkey to test Russian S-400 air defense system amid tensions in NATO

NATO's secretary-general urged Turkey on Monday to seek alternatives to the Russian system, but Turkey plans to test-fire the S-400 this month.

A picture taken on February 5, 2019, shows a general view of the damaged buildings in the northern Iraqi town of Sinjar. - For decades in the mountainous region of Sinjar in Iraq's diverse north, the lives of many revolved around their lands, but now many Sunni Arab farmers are estranged from their fields out of fear of reprisal attacks. The region, which borders Syria is home to an array of communities -- Shiite and Sunni Arabs, Kurds, and Yazidis -- which formed a patchwork that was ripped apart when the

Turkey targets Yazidi militia in Iraq over PKK links

The Sinjar Resistance Units have been targeted by Turkish forces in Iraq for its connection with the Kurdistan Workers Party.

Facebook rebuffs Turkey’s controversial social media law

Facebook told Turkish civil society members it would not comply with Ankara’s new social media law over concerns it would limit free speech rights, setting the stage for possible fines and access blocks on the platform as other social media companies consider their options.

Canada suspending arms exports to Turkey amid Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict

Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said he is suspending the permits pending an investigation.

Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar (R) and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) meet in Ankara, on October 05, 2020. (Photo by - / POOL / AFP) (Photo by -/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

NATO chief presses for calm in East Med, cease-fire in south Caucasus

During a visit to Ankara Monday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg voiced support for de-confliction efforts between Turkey and Greece in the eastern Mediterranean while calling for a cease-fire in the southern Caucasus.

STEPANAKERT, NAGORNO-KARABAKH - OCTOBER 2: Journalists take pictures and video of a crater left by a bomb that fell outside a fire station on October 2, 2020 in Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh. A decades-old conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan has reignited in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, recognized by most countries as part of Azerbaijan, but controlled by ethnic Armenians since a 1994 ceasefire. Dozens have been reported killed in the recent fighting, in which both countries blame the other

Did Erdogan approve Azerbaijan escalation in Nagorno-Karabakh?

The Turkish president is the author of a militarized regional policy that now stretches from the Caucuses to Libya.

Are Turkey's Salafi groups taking up arms?

Reports of increasing private armament among Turkey's Salafi groups have fueled concerns over social peace in Turkey where polarization is rife.

STEPANAKERT, NAGORNO-KARABAKH - OCTOBER 2: An emergency services member stands atop the site of a grass fire started by a bomb that fell nearby on October 2, 2020 in Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh. A decades-old conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan has reignited in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, recognized by most countries as part of Azerbaijan, but controlled by ethnic Armenians since a 1994 ceasefire. Dozens have been reported killed in the recent fighting, in which both countries blame the

Syrian fighters add snarls to tangled south Caucasus

Clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia seem to have taken a dangerous turn with conflicting reports of Turkey bringing in Syrian mercenaries.