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

Turkey

Turkey

November 12, 2026

Ankara 12:16 am

8°C

People walk past a Bitcoin sign at the entrance of a cryptocurrency exchange office on Nov. 8, 2024, in Istanbul, Turkey.

Watchdog urges Turkey to tighten digital asset rules for $144B crypto economy

A review of Turkey’s crypto-asset regulations by the Financial Stability Board acknowledged significant progress made by local authorities but called for further measures to address potential risks.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) and Central Bank Governor Sahap Kavcioglu attend a signing ceremony with Abu Dhabi’s crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on Nov. 24, 2021. ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey’s banking watchdog chief submits resignation amid fund scandal

Turkey’s government is facing growing criticism over regulators’ failure to prevent a fund scandal involving more than $20 billion.

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Explainer

Iran war pushes up coal use, complicating Turkey’s COP31 pledge

Turkey is asking world leaders at COP31 to back a global push to use more electricity, even as the Iran war has driven up natural gas prices and pushed some power producers back to coal.

Latest News

Turkey bars MP’s wife from travel after his fund scandal criticism: What to know

OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

Steel factory explosion in western Turkey kills at least 16

A steel worker works in front of giant iron melting pot in Kardemir Iron and Steel Factory in Karabuk, northwestern Turkey, Aug. 26 2005. (TARIK TINAZAY/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Will Democrats block Trump’s push to deliver Turkey F-35s, lift sanctions?

MEHMET ESER/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister for Economic and Financial Affairs Ali Babacan attends a session at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, January 28, 2012. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTR2WZDD

Erdogan’s Top Economic Adviser Takes Heat from Business

A controversial tax probe at Turkey’s largest business conglomerate adds to the woes of economy chief Ali Babacan.

Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou (L) pins a badge of EU presidency on the collar of his Turkish counterpart Yasar Yakis (R) upon his arrival in Ankara January 30, 2003. Greek Foreign Minister Papandreou whose country holds a terms' presidency of the European Union will attend a meeting of the European Union troika in Ankara January 31, 2003. ??? USE ONLY - RTXLR19

Turkish Diplomat Discusses Missteps in Syria

In an interview with Taraf, veteran Turkish diplomat Yasar Yakis speaks about Turkey's position toward Syria and his views on recent Kurdish developments in northern Syria.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan addresses members of parliament from his ruling AK Party (AKP) during a meeting at the Turkish parliament in Ankara June 25, 2013. Turkish anti-terrorism police detained 20 people in raids in the capital Ankara on Tuesday in connection with weeks of anti-government protests across the country, media reports said. The unrest began at the end of May when police used force against campaigners opposed to plans to redevelop a central Istanbul park. The protest spiralled int

Erdogan Seeks Informers

Is Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government encouraging people to report on each other?

Demonstrators hold Kurdish flags and portraits of jailed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan during a gathering to celebrate Newroz in the southeastern Turkish city of Diyarbakir March 21, 2013. Jailed Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan ordered his fighters on Thursday to cease fire and withdraw from Turkish soil as a step to ending a conflict that has killed 40,000 people, riven the country and battered its economy. Hundreds of thousands of Kurds gathered in the regional centre of Diyarb

Can the Kurds Redeem Erdogan’s Faltering Image?

If Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan can achieve a peace deal with the Kurds, he will have earned a place for himself in the history books.

Koc Holding Chairman Mustafa Koc makes a speech during the opening ceremony of the 12th Istanbul Biennial September 15, 2011. The 12th Istanbul Biennial has been organised by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV) and is sponsored by Koc Holding. The Istanbul Biennial will run until November 13. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: BUSINESS INDUSTRIAL SOCIETY ENTERTAINMENT) - RTR2RC15

Is Audit of Koc Companies Erdogan’s Revenge for Gezi Park?

Police-accompanied tax audit raids against three companies of Turkey's largest industrial group, Koc, is putting into deeds Erdogan’s threats against capital owners he holds responsible for the Gezi Park events.

Anti-government protesters clash with riot police at Taksim in central Istanbul July 20, 2013. Turkish police fired water cannon on Saturday to disperse hundreds of protesters who gathered to march to Gezi Park in central Istanbul, which has been at the heart of fierce demonstrations against Prime Minister Erdogan's rule. REUTERS/Osman Orsal (TURKEY - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS) - RTX11TB6

Erdogan Threatens to Settle Score With The Times

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatens to “do what we can in the legal sphere” against the British daily The Times for publishing an advertisement denouncing his government.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu addresses the media in Ankara June 13, 2013. REUTERS/Umit Bektas (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX10M6J

Has Turkey Made U-Turn On Syria’s Kurds?

The leader of the Democratic Union Party of Syria (PYD), Salih Muslim, says Turkey has given the green light for autonomy for the Kurds in Syria.

People stand facing Ataturk Cultural Center during a protest at Taksim Square in Istanbul June 18, 2013. Performance artist Erdem Gunduz became the new symbol of anti-government protests in Turkey on Tuesday after his eight-hour vigil in Taksim Square earned him the nickname "the Standing Man". Gunduz said he was protesting in solidarity with demonstrators who were evicted at the weekend from Gezi Park adjoining Taksim, an intervention by police that triggered some of the most violent clashes to date. What

Turkey’s Missed Opportunities

Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan might wish to retract some of his foreign policy decisions.

Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (C) reacts as he poses with his Greek counterpart Antonis Samaras (L) and Greece's Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos (R) after signing agreements in Istanbul March 4, 2013. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3EK7W

Turkey's Egypt Question

Turkey's role in the Middle East will turn on how it handles the crisis in Egypt.

Mothers of slain Turkish protesters lead a march in Ankara on July 26, 2013 to demand justice.

Protest Aftermath Stokes Anti-Government Anger in Turkey

A judicial clampdown on demonstrators and lenient treatment of deadly police conduct hardens anti-government sentiment in the wake of Turkey’s protests.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) meets with Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu before attending the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) security meetings in Bandar Seri Begawan July 2, 2013. REUTERS/Jacquelyn Martin/Pool (BRUNEI - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX119IY

Al-Monitor’s Gursel Wins Award; Watch US House on Syria

Al-Monitor’s coverage of press freedom in Turkey, the US House of Representatives on Syria, and Iraq as possible mediator on Iran; Daoud Kuttab discusses the Middle East with Fareed Zakaria.

Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi (R) and Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan (L) answer questions from journalists during a news conference after their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Cairo November 17, 2012. REUTERS/Egyptian Presidency/Handout (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RTR3AJOZ

Erdogan’s Egypt Policy In Disarray

Egyptian Ambassador to Ankara Abderahman Salaheldin asks whether Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has a principled approach to the Egyptian revolutions of 2011 and 2013.