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Turkey

Turkey

May 12, 2026

Ankara 2:07 pm

23°C

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.

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

Turkey reopened the Akcakale-Tell Abyad crossing on Monday, ending an 11-year closure along the Syria border.

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)

Analysis

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

Turkey’s planned test of a 6,000-kilometer missile could boost Ankara’s defense industry prestige, strengthen its deterrence messaging and feed a powerful domestic narrative of technological self-reliance, but it also raises questions about cost, timing and NATO protection.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

MURAT KOCABAS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Culture

How ‘dog mom’ vacuum cleaner ad sparked culture war in Turkey

A Mother’s Day advertisement featuring a “dog mom” triggered a backlash from conservative media, government officials and regulators, turning a soft consumer campaign into a flashpoint over motherhood, declining birth rates, stray dogs and even antisemitism.

Latest News

Turkey, Japan launch defense industry partnership with eye on drones

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.

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

Iraqi officials stress need to boost Arab ties while balancing relations with Iran

Iraqi officials and their Arab counterparts at the 2019 Sulaimaniyah Forum called for turning toward other Arab states while balancing relations with Tehran.

Is Ankara’s religious education drive stumbling?

Despite Ankara’s unrelenting drive to expand religious education, enrollment in religious schools has remained below the government’s targets.

Turkey’s WomanTV offers new voice on women’s issues

A new TV station is taking on femicide, glass ceilings and violence, as well as sharing success stories of women in Turkey.

A money changer counts Turkish lira banknotes at a currency exchange office in Istanbul, Turkey August 13, 2018. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RC139D2160B0

Turkish economy faces grim outlook for 2019

THE OECD forecasts that the Turkish economy, after contracting this year, should grow again next year; Erdogan goes after former presidential candidate Meral Aksener.

The Rabia sign is projected on the Egyptian Consulate during a protest against an Egyptian court's decision to sentence deposed President Mohamed Mursi to death, in Istanbul, Turkey, late June 16, 2015. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - GF10000129868

Mired in recriminations, Turkish-Egyptian ties remain stagnant

Prospects for improved relations between Ankara and Cairo appear dimmer than ever following recent executions in Egypt.

German-Turkish journalist Deniz Yucel walks through a plane as he is flanked by a group of people at Ataturk International Airport in Istanbul, Turkey, February 16, 2018. REUTERS/Huseyin Aldemir - UP1EE2G1ER906

Turkey becoming minefield for foreign journalists

Three foreign reporters in Turkey have seen their accreditations terminated, while the renewal applications of 50 others remain unanswered since December, fueling concern that Ankara is seeking to drive the foreign media out.

Russian S-400 air defence mobile missile launching systems take part in a military parade during celebrations marking Independence Day in Minsk July 3, 2014. REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko (BELARUS - Tags: ANNIVERSARY POLITICS MILITARY) - GM1EA740JRH01

Turkey dismisses US threat about buying Russian S-400 air defense system

Turkey does not appear to be budging from its purchase of S-400 air-defense missiles from Russia despite US threats to cancel delivery of F-35 jets Turkey has ordered.

Turkish air force patrollers fly by as Turkish soldiers take photos with their mobile phones during a ceremony celebrating the 96th anniversary of Anzac Day in Canakkale on April 24, 2011. A dawn ceremony on April 25 marks the time of the first landings of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) at the Gallipoli peninsula in the ill-fated Allied campaign to take the Dardanelles Strait from the Ottoman Empire. In the ensuing eight months of fighting, about 11,500 ANZAC troops were killed, fighting

Cyberization means it's not your daddy's war anymore

New technology is infiltrating the old conflict between Turkey and outlawed Kurdish militants, and soldiers may have to sacrifice their smartphones for safety.

U.S. President Donald Trump, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are seen at the start of the NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium July 11, 2018. REUTERS/Reinhard Krause - RC1C67E741D0

Turks fire back as Trump ends preferential trade status

The United States removed Turkey from its list of countries that enjoy tariff-free access to the US market, a decision criticized by the Turkish government.

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan attends the official opening ceremony of Istanbul's new airport, in Istanbul, Turkey, October 29, 2018. REUTERS/Murad Sezer TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC183844E020

Is Erdogan's airport dream turning into nightmare?

The Istanbul New Airport's current and projected damage to ecosystems, its subpar construction and its woeful financial setup is turning the project into a grandiose failure — one that will cost the Turkish public dearly for decades to come.

Turkish forces patrol an area in Afrin, Syria March 22, 2018. REUTERS/ Khalil Ashawi - RC19CBF8C260

Turkey faces growing Kurdish insurgency in Syria's Afrin

An investigative journalism site reports that hundreds of violent attacks claimed by several anti-Free Syrian Army groups in Afrin mirror the modus operandi of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

Egypt, Turkey vying for clout

Turkey has loudly criticized the Egyptian regime, pointing to a growing competition between the two countries for prominence.