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Turkey

Turkey

May 17, 2026

Ankara 12:13 am

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Mazloum Kobane, commander-in-chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks during the pan-Kurdish "Unity and Consensus" conference in Qamishli in northeastern Syria on April 26, 2025.

Interview

Syrian Kurdish commander Kobane says Turkey visit ‘in the making,’ Ocalan meeting possible

The SDF commander-in-chief reflected on a fragile integration deal with Damascus, growing Kurdish backlash and ongoing talks with Turkey as questions mount over Rojava’s political future.

Mazloum Kobane

Mazloum Kobane

SDF commander in chief

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.

Turkey, Armenia to launch direct trade in normalization push: What to know

The move removes a decades-old reexport mechanism routed largely through Georgia as Ankara and Yerevan step up normalization efforts.

Latest News

New Turkey maritime draft bill fuels EastMed tensions with Greece, Cyprus

The helicopter of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lands on Abdulhamid Han drill ship, the fourth built by Turkey, in Mersin on Aug. 9, 2022, before being sent for gas exploration to an undisputed area in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Gazipasa.

Turkey's border reopening unlocks new sphere of influence in Syria

Turkish Red Crescent's cars and trucks cross the Turkish border as they leave the Syrian city of Tel Abyad on Oct. 19, 2019, in Akcakale, Turkey.

Analysis

From drones to deterrence: Turkey's ICBM missile signals bigger ambitions

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - MAY 06: A man poses for a photograph in front of the newly unveiled, Turkish made intercontinental ballistic missile Yildirimhan at the SAHA International Defence and Aerospace Expo on May 06, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. The International Defence and Aerospace Exhibition, showcased Turkish and foreign companies new products and technology. The expo was dominated by UAV products as modern warfare increasingly shifts to drone and unmanned technologies. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

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

Turkey makes payout to families of FSA fighters killed in Afrin operation

The Turkish government has paid the families of Free Syrian Army militants killed in Operation Olive Branch a death gratuity, though the families of those Syrians killed in other operations are still waiting for aid.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Bob Corker (R-TN) speaks to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (Not Pictured) as ranking member Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) looks on during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing titled "An Update on American Diplomacy to Advance Our National Security Strategy" on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., July 25, 2018. REUTERS/Aaron Bernstein - RC1E51F466C0

Washington ratchets up sanctions threats against Turkey

President Donald Trump threatened to impose sanctions on the same day the Senate advanced a bill restricting Turkey’s access to financial assistance.

U.S. President Donald Trump talks to Turkeyís President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium July 11, 2018. Tatyana Zenkovich/Pool via REUTERS - RC1B9A3C2D00

Trump lashes out at Erdogan, threatens sanctions over Brunson

The strain between Turkey and the United States hits another high point as the US president threatened Ankara with "large sanctions" if it does not free detained American pastor Andrew Brunson.

Turkish aid agency caught in Netanyahu-Erdogan crossfire

Israel's National Security Council has advised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to react to the recent vitriol from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with sanctions against a Turkish aid agency.

US pastor Andrew Craig Brunson escorted by Turkish plain clothes police officers arrives at his house on July 25, 2018 in Izmir. - Turkey on July 15, 2018 moved from jail to house arrest US pastor Andrew Brunson who has spent almost two years imprisoned on terror-related charges, in a controversial case that has ratcheted up tensions with the United States. Andrew Brunson, who ran a protestant church in the Aegean city of Izmir, was first detained in October 2016 and had remained in prison in Turkey ever si

What prompted Turkey to move US pastor from prison to house arrest?

The United States must determine what best motivates Turkey when it comes to foreign policy and diplomacy: the carrot or the stick.

A prisoner transport vehicle leaves after the trial of US Pastor Andrew Brunson who is datainined in Turkey for over a year on Terror charges, in Aliaga, north of Izmir, on July 18, 2018. - Andrew Brunson, head of a small Protestant church in the western city of Izmir, has been in detention since October 2016. Turkish prosecutors accuse Brunson of links to a group led by US-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen -- who Ankara says was behind a failed 2016 coup -- and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). (Phot

US pastor granted transfer to house arrest by Turkish court

American pastor Andrew Brunson has won a long-awaited move from prison to house arrest from the Turkish court, which credited "health issues" for its reversal.

Turkey seeks to grab bigger share of halal market

Turkey is setting up a Halal Accreditation Authority in the hope of boosting sales to fellow Muslim countries.

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - JULY 11: US President Donald Trump walks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the 2018 NATO Summit at NATO headquarters on July 11, 2018 in Brussels, Belgium. Leaders from NATO member and partner states are meeting for a two-day summit, which is being overshadowed by strong demands by U.S. President Trump for most NATO member countries to spend more on defense. (Photo by Jasper Juinen/Getty Images)

Friction with US may affect Turkey's trajectory in NATO

US President Donald Trump and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shared a fist bump in Brussels, but a figurative fistfight continues between Congress and Ankara.

Turkey's newly appointed Minister of Treasury and Finance Berat Albayrak swears in at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) in Ankara, Turkey on July 10, 2018. (Photo by ADEM ALTAN / AFP) (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Turkey declines to raise interest rates, sending lira on another tumble

Turkey's Central Bank has decided to keep interest rates where they are, surprising investors and dashing hopes that Turkish policies might evolve to meet the country's dismal economic reality.

Detained pastor case casting large shadow over Turkish-US ties

Complex criminal cases with political overtones makes the case of the American pastor Andrew Brunson more difficult to resolve than it might have been otherwise.

Students pose for a selfie at Anitkabir, the mausoleum of modern Turkey's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, during a Youth and Sports Day celebration in Ankara, Turkey May 19, 2018. REUTERS/Murad Sezer TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC1A167FE350

Turkish woman jailed for insulting Ataturk

Conservative supporters of Turkey's authoritarian president have been uncharacteristically quiet on the arrest of a young woman for insulting Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, whose legacy the ruling party has lately been trying to appropriate.

Turkey poised to replace emergency law with doppelganger

Call it what you will, Turkey's restrictive new "anti-terror package" looks suspiciously like the state of emergency the president imposed for the past two years.