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Turkey

Turkey

September 27, 2026

Ankara 9:53 pm

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Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (3rd R) with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud (R) and Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar (2nd R), Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman (C), Turkish Chief of the General Staff General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu (L), Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif (2nd R), Pakistani Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir (3rd R) at the first meeting of the Strategic Political and Defence Committee in relation to the

Analysis

Why Turkey is drawing the line at defense in its support for Saudi Arabia

Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia are forcing Mecca pact signatories to quickly operationalize their agreement, but are unlikely to draw Turkey into direct action against the Iran-backed group.

Ezgi Akin

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

Turkish soldiers conduct military exercises near the Habur crossing gate between Turkey and Iraq on Sept. 27, 2017 in the Silopi district, southeast Turkey.

Analysis

Can Turkey’s Bashiqa withdrawal pave the way for deeper Iraq ties?

Ankara hopes the planned handover of its Bashiqa base will deepen security cooperation with Baghdad and unlock broader economic ties, but implementation hinges on restoring Iraqi state authority in Sinjar, where previous efforts to remove armed groups have stalled.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Latest News

Turkey warns Greece-Cyprus-Israel power cable needs Ankara's approval

Servicemen of Yavuz class, TCG Turgutreis (F-241) warship, stand at attention on the deck as they participate in the live-fire phase of the "Blue Homeland-2026" (Mavi Vatan) tactical military exercises in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, in Antalya on April 9, 2026.

Explainer

Turkey agrees to hand over contentious Bashiqa base to Iraq

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi meets with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in New York City, Sept. 23, 2026.

Samuel Wendel

Senior Analyst, Middle East Business & Tech

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

Members of the Iraqi security forces fire artillery during the clashes with the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the town of Dalli Abbas in Diyala province, June 28, 2014. Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, the most influential Shi'ite cleric in Iraq, called on the country's leaders on Friday to choose a prime minister within the next four days, a dramatic political intervention that could hasten the end of Nuri al-Maliki's eight year rule. Picture take

The Syria disconnect in US Iraq policy

Iraq welcomes Syrian airstrikes on ISIS; Aleppo’s water crisis.

Stacks of Turkey's lira coins are seen in this picture illustration taken in Istanbul July 23, 2013. Turkey's central bank raised interest rates on Tuesday and said it would, if necessary, take further steps to stop the lira from falling. The move - a rise in the overnight lending rate to 7.25 percent from 6.5 percent - was a reaction to capital outflows that have knocked the lira down as much as 9 percent against the dollar. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: BUSINESS POLITICS) - RTX11W1S

US-Turkish citizens hit with sticker shock over new tax law

Turks with US citizenship making profits from the stock market and interest in Turkey are now liable for taxes going back six years.

Kurdish demonstrators hold flags with portraits of jailed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan in front of the European Parliament in Strasbourg February 16, 2012, in support of Ocalan, who was captured on February 15, 1999, and is currently serving a life sentence in Turkey. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler (FRANCE - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR2XXY4

AKP seeks to 'legalize' PKK peace talks

Turkey’s ruling party has drafted a bill that puts the peace process with the PKK in a legal framework, which is also seen as a means for the AKP to win Kurdish support in the August presidential elections.

Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan addresses members of the parliament of his ruling AK Party (AKP) during a meeting at the Turkish Parliament in Ankara on June 24, 2014. AFP PHOTO/ADEM ALTAN (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/Getty Images)

Erdogan: 'No one should expect me to provoke ISIS'

Turkey pursues a cautious policy while Iraq's military crisis escalates.

Turkish girls attend a class at the Kazim Karabekir Girls' Imam-Hatip School in Istanbul February 10, 2010. The imam-hatip network is a far cry from the western stereotype of the madrassa as an institution that teaches the Koran by rote and little else. Originally founded to educate Muslim religious functionaries in the 1920s, the imam-hatip syllabus devotes only around 40 percent of study to religious subjects like Arabic, Islamic jurisprudence and rhetoric. The rest is given over to secular topics. To ma

Erdogan's reforms meant to educate 'pious generation'

A far-reaching overhaul underway in Turkey’s educational system indicates that the government uses education as a tool to shape conservative and pious students.

Troops and vehicles from the national army in Kufra, are seen taking part in a "Operation Dignity" mission, at the Libyan-Egyptian border, near Kufra, June 5, 2014. The operation, a self-declared campaign launched by former Libyan army officer Khalifa Haftar, is conducted against Islamist militants by irregular forces - a mixture of a mixture of militias, regular army and air force units - loyal to Haftar. Picture taken June 5, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (LIBYA - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR3SQND

Hifter accuses Turkey of supporting terror in Libya

Retired Libyan rebel Gen. Khalifa Belqasim Hifter's accusation is another sign of Turkey's deepening isolation in Arab politics.

Mugla, TURKEY: People sunbathe at Iztuzu beach 13km from Dalyan, 27 June 2006. Iztuzu beach is one of the rare beaches in the world where Caretta Caretta (loggerhead turtles) leave their eggs, and human activities on this beach are limited. AFP PHOTO/MUSTAFA OZER (Photo credit should read MUSTAFA OZER/AFP/Getty Images)

Real estate sales boom as Turkey opens to foreign buyers

Following measures making it easier for foreigners to acquire property in Turkey, sales have skyrocketed. Foreigners’ locations of choice include Istanbul as well as the Turkish coast, especially Antalya.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan greets members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) as he arrives for a meeting at the Turkish parliament in Ankara June 17, 2014. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3U7QZ

AKP pushes its own brand of Turkish neonationalism

Turkish neonationalism, traditionally a product of authoritarian state power, is being pushed by proponents of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and nurtured by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Syrian Kurdish leader: Turkey turns blind eye to ISIS

Salih Muslim, the leader of the Syrian Kurdish movement PYD, gives an exclusive interview to Al-Monitor on post-Mosul developments and Turkey's alleged support for ISIS.

Iraqi Shi'ite Turkmen fighters take part in an intensive security deployment in the town of Taza, south of the northern oil city of Kirkuk, June 19, 2014. The United States is contemplating talks with its arch-enemy Iran to support the Iraqi government in its battle with Sunni Islamist insurgents who routed Baghdad's army and seized the north of the country in the past week. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTR3UORW

Iraqi Turkmen feel abandoned by Turkey

Many Iraqi Turkmen claim Turkey has given priority to its relations with the Kurdistan Regional Government at their expense.

A woman wearing a head scarf checks her mobile device as she awaits the speech of the Turkish Prime Minister during an event to mark the 10th anniversary of the Union of European Turkish Democrats UETD at the Albert Schultz Hall in Vienna, Austria on June 19, 2014. Austria warned the Turkish Prime Minister on June 12, 2014 not to say anything that may "split" Austrian society during his visit.
AFP PHOTO / PATRICK DOMINGO (Photo credit should read Patrick Domingo/AFP/Getty Images)

Erdogan riles Austrian hosts in visit to Vienna

In his visit to rally expatriate Turks in Austria for his likely presidential campaign, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s comments annoyed Austrian leaders, a replay of the prime minister’s visit to Germany last month.

How a Turkish girl broke the heart of a shah

In her latest book, Turkish novelist Nazli Eray shares the story of her mother, a woman whose beauty once stunned Middle East elites and left the Iranian shah heartbroken.