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Turkey

June 17, 2026

Ankara 9:38 pm

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with Orthodox Patriarch of Bartholomew at the presidential complex, Ankara, Turkey, June 16, 2026.

Culture

Turkey’s Erdogan meets Orthodox patriarch amid push for reopening Halki Seminary

The meeting comes ahead of US President Trump’s expected attendance at next month's NATO leaders’ summit in Turkey, after Trump personally urged his Turkish counterpart to reopen the Halki Seminary.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan attends the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, on May 22, 2026.

Turkey’s Fidan heads to Moscow as S-400 sanctions issue returns to fore

The visit comes weeks before Turkey hosts NATO leaders, on the sidelines of which Ankara hopes to reach a deal with Washington over CAATSA sanctions over its purchase of Russian S-400s.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan received Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Turkish House in New York on Sept. 19, 2023.

Analysis

Erdogan-Netanyahu war of words signals deeper rivalry for regional influence

The latest Erdogan-Netanyahu clash underscored how Turkey-Israel tensions have grown beyond the Palestinian issue and into a wider regional rivalry spanning Syria, Lebanon, Iran and the eastern Mediterranean.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Yasin AKGUL / AFP via Getty Images

Feature

Turkey’s World Cup return clouded by politics, dawn kickoffs

Turkey finally has the World Cup moment it waited 24 years for, but much of the country will either be asleep for it or arguing over efforts to claim it.

Ezgi Akin

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

Latest News

Explainer

Turkey slams France-Cyprus military pact as East Med rivalries deepen

Cyprus' President Nikos Christodoulides (2nd L) and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron (C) review the honor guard at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia on April 23, 2026, ahead of a meeting on the sidelines of a European summit.

Analysis

As Trump admin drops Halkbank case, S-400 last big hurdle in US-Turkey ties

Russian S-400 anti-aircraft missile launching system is displayed at the exposition field in Kubinka Patriot Park outside Moscow on Aug. 22, 2017 during the first day of the International Military-Technical Forum Army-2017.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

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

ISTANBUL, TURKEY - OCTOBER 08: The EU opened membership talks with Turkey recently but said the country must pursue reforms. If the talks succeed, Turkey may join the European Union as the first country with a Muslim majority. The Turkey and EU flag is seen in Istanbul, 08 October 2005 (Photo by Friedemann Vogel/Getty Images)

Turkey-EU set to seek new path forward in ties

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet European leaders this week to determine how the strained relationship between Ankara and Brussels will proceed henceforth.

CORRECTION - Russian mediator Alexander Lavrentiev, Iranian deputy foreign minister Hossein Jaberi Ansari, Kazakh Foreign Minister Kairat Abdrakhmanov and UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura attend the signing of a memorandum on creating safe zones in Syria during the fourth round of Syria peace talks in Astana on May 4, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / Stanislav FILIPPOV / The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadata of this photo by Stanislav FILIPPOV has been modified in AFP systems in the following m

Why Iran wants 'de-escalation' zones in Syria

While the establishment of "safe zones" has never been part of Russia's or Iran’s plans, their agreement to create "de-escalation zones" at this juncture serves the interests of both countries.

BEIJING, CHINA - MAY 14: Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan leaves the stage after speaking during the opening ceremony of the Belt and Road Forum at the China National Convention Center (CNCC) in Beijing, Sunday, May 14, 2017. The Belt and Road Forum focuses on the One Belt, One Road (OBOR) trade initiative. (Photo by Mark Schiefelbein-Pool/Getty Images)

Security around Erdogan tight as Brussels braces for NATO talks

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to press the European Union on terrorism, its customs union and Turkey’s accession talks, though Human Rights Watch has called on the EU to prioritize human rights as it renegotiates the existing customs union.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan waves as he arrives at the entrance to the West Wing to meet with President Donald Trump at the entrance to the West Wing of the White House in Washington, U.S. May 16, 2017. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts - RTX363KW

New voices join Washington clamor over beatdown by Erdogan guards

More US lawmakers are calling for action against the Turkish president's security detail after it beat up protesters in Washington, while the Turkish Foreign Ministry complains of what it calls "aggressive" conduct by "US security personnel."

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, accompanied by his wife Emine, and Turkey's Prime Minister Binali Yildirim, waves to supporters during the congress of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Ankara, Turkey, May 21, 2017. REUTERS/Burhan Ozbilici/Pool - RTX36SZA

Turkey's AKP manages to fend off economic crisis, but at what price?

The Turkish government has succeeded in fending off a full-blown economic crisis, but its measures have made the economy less resilient against future contractions.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan makes a speech during the Extraordinary Congress of the ruling AK Party (AKP) in Ankara, Turkey, May 21, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTX36TBI

Erdogan looks to strengthen grip with return to AKP helm

Now that Turkey's ruling party has restored President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as chair, expect a radical shakeup throughout the country in preparation for critical municipal elections to be held in March 2019.

A Syrian refugee man walks in Elbeyli refugee camp near the Turkish-Syrian border in Kilis province, Turkey, December 1, 2016. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTSU6HM

Can Syrians sway future elections in Turkey?

Close to 2 million Syrians will obtain the right to seek citizenship in Turkey in 2019, a prospect that may have decisive repercussions on a critical election cycle that year.

Passengers check-in for UK bound flights at a Turkish Airlines counter at Ataturk International airport in Istanbul, Turkey, March 24, 2017. REUTERS/Murad Sezer - RTX32IK6

'Plan B' for worried Turks: Move abroad

Under increasing political and economic pressure at home, thousands of wealthy Turks are buying property abroad to obtain residency permits.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and U.S President Donald Trump deliver statements to reporters in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, U.S. May 16, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTX363IZ

How two clerics topped agenda of Erdogan-Trump meeting

Turkey's Protestant community fears that Ankara could use an imprisoned American pastor as a bargaining chip to press for the extradition of Pennsylvania-based Turkish preacher Fethullah Gulen.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a statement to reporters alongside U.S President Donald Trump after their meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S. May 16, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTX363JM

Why Erdogan's US visit will only create more problems for Turkey

The expectation that Erdogan and Trump will get along because they share dominant personality traits backfired, as Erdogan concluded the shortest international meeting in his 15-year political history.

Turkey’s struggling wine sector gets Levantine touch

Along Turkey’s chic Aegean coast, the dream of owning a vineyard could easily turn into a nightmare as tourism declines and legal restrictions rise.

Morocco cracks down on fighters returning from IS

The Moroccan authorities are deploying all efforts to curb the phenomenon of former Islamic State fighters returning to their home country by arresting them.