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

Turkey

Turkey

May 3, 2026

Ankara 7:52 pm

8°C

Zaidi

Analysis

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

Iraq’s prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, is expected to sustain growing economic and strategic ties with Turkey thanks to his business-oriented approach, though uncertainty over his political stance could test cooperation on sensitive issues.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Members of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), from the British Army's 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards, No. 2 Company, patrol along the buffer zone separating the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus and the breakaway Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in the divided capital Nicosia on Feb. 17, 2026.

Turkey warns France over Cyprus troop deployment: What to know

A potential French deployment to Greek Cyprus comes amid Turkey’s growing concerns of strategic encirclement in the Eastern Mediterranean.

This aerial photograph shows Turkey's first floating natural gas production platform, "Osman Gazi," passing through the Bosphorus, in Istanbul, on May 29, 2025.

Turkey advances gas pipeline plan to northern Cyprus as East Med rivalry grows

The Turkish energy minister said the country's oil and natural gas pipeline operator, BOTAS, has started the engineering work for the pipeline.

Latest News

In first, Libya’s rival armies to join drill in Turkey: What to know

Cadets of the Saiqa Force (Special Forces) of the self-styled Libyan National Army affiliated with eastern strongman Khalifa Hifter take part in a graduation ceremony in tribute to the force's late commander, Wanis Bukhamada, in the eastern city of Benghazi, on Jan. 20, 2022.

Turkey’s military spending jumps to $30B, leads Mideast growth in 2025

Turkey's submarines and fast-attack craft ships 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.

Analysis

Why Saudi Arabia, Egypt are wary of Turkey’s proposed 4-way defense pact with Pakistan

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan hosted the third meeting of the foreign ministers of Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on the margins of the 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum, on April 17, 2026.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Turkey’s Baykar tests K2 swarm kamikaze drones for first time: What to know

CORLU, TURKEY- MARCH 2: A B model of Bayraktar AKINCI TİHA (Assault Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) in the sky on March 2, 2022 in Corlu, Turkey. (Photo by Baykar Press Office/dia images via Getty Images)

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

People walk through snow in front of the Blue Mosque in the Sultanahmet District on Jan. 25, 2022 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Istanbul residents get stuck in snow as politicians throw blame at each other

The coldest weather in decades cripples life and transportation in Istanbul, with stranded passengers staging protests at Istanbul airport.

Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Why Turkey wants to mediate in Ukraine crisis

Erdogan’s offer to mediate between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders reflects Ankara’s growing fears over the conundrums it could find itself in should war materialize.

Turkish broadcast journalist Sedef Kabas (C), speaks to media members after her trial on Oct. 6, 2015, in Istanbul.

Turkish court jails journalist over proverb that 'insulted' Erdogan

TV media figure Sedef Kabas is the latest among tens of thousands to be investigated over insulting the president during Erdogan's time in office.

Ethiopia Tigray

Ripple effects from drone sales force Turkey to move Ethiopian embassy

Turkey was forced to relocate its Ethiopian embassy to Kenya after increasing threat out of its involvement in the country’s clashes with the Tigray rebels by supplying combat drones to Addis Ababa.

Israel gas

Can Israeli gas bridge Turkey-Israel rift?

The dimming prospects of the EastMed pipeline project offer Turkey an opportunity to mend fences with Israel and break its isolation in the energy rivalry in the Eastern Mediterranean.

A screen grab from the music video for Sezen Aksu's "Manifesto".

Turkey’s pop queen draws sudden wrath over five-year-old lyrics

Sezen Aksu, the reclusive diva of Turkish pop, has become the latest target of conservatives who accuse her of blasphemy.

People walk past a currency exchange office on Aug. 29, 2018 in Istanbul, Turkey.

Pro-Erdogan business leaders anxious about Turkey's economy

The pro-government business association MUSIAD has stood behind Erdogan’s controversial economic policies but appears concerned that both borrowing costs and foreign exchange prices remain above the desired levels.

Elderly people wearing a protective face mask, sit and look at the Bosphorus on May 10, 2020, at Besiktas, Istanbul, after a month and a half of lockdown restrictions aimed at stemming the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Inflation crisis hits Turkey's retirees hardest of all

According to economists and Turkish seniors' personal accounts, the elderly who suffered most during the COVID-19 pandemic are now being hardest hit by the economic slump.

This photo taken on Feb. 9, 2020, shows an attendant checking the stock of sanitary pads inside a mobile toilet on a bus in Pune, India.

Turkish women decry high price of sanitary pads

Women activists call on the Turkish government for a tax reduction and other measures to lower the prices of menstrual products, which have grown forbiddingly expensive amid the country’s economic turmoil.

BULENT KILIC/AFP via Getty Images

BBC Turkish staff strike over pay

Workers at the BBC's Istanbul bureau are taking action after the corporation denied a salary increase in line with inflation.

People sit on the ground by a destroyed building in the Kurdish town of Kobani, in the north of Aleppo governorate, Syria, Feb. 25, 2021.

Turkey aims to keep tensions high in northeast Syria through targeted killings

In retaliation for a mysterious explosion along the Turkish-Syrian border, Turkey hit several Kurdish positions in the predominantly Kurdish town of Kobani in an attack that the Kurds call a “war rehearsal” aiming to test the water.

Turkey Hurjet

Turkey to begin mass producing fighter jet training plane

The Hürjet is now expected to take first flight next year.