Turkey - AL-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent since 2012

Turkey

Turkey

March 23, 2026

Ankara 3:49 pm

11°C

United Arab Emirates army helicopters fly from the Burj al Arab hotel (R) toward Burj Khalifa, Dubai, Jan. 16, 2026.

Analysis

Iran war drives Turkey-Gulf defense alignment, but not alliance

Despite accelerated cooperation as a result of the US-Israeli war on Iran, structural and political constraints would make a formal military alliance unlikely.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (R) and Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (2L) arrive to address a joint press conference in Doha on March 19, 2026. (Photo by Karim JAAFAR / AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey, Qatar pledge to deepen defense ties, blame Israel for Iran war

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s trip to Doha is part of a Gulf tour that began Wednesday in Riyadh, as Iran continues to strike energy assets across the region.

Latest News

Exclusive

Iraqi oil flows to Turkey after US pledges role in Baghdad-Kurds customs dispute

A view of the oil refinery on March 17, 2026 in Erbil, Iraq.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

NATO deploys new Patriot battery to Turkey as Fidan in Riyadh for regional talks

A Patriot anti-missile battery launcher, deployed by Dutch NATO soldiers, is seen March 11, 2003 at the Diyarbakir military airport in southeastern Turkey.

Desperate to sell its oil, Iraq turns to Turkey amid standoff with Kurds

An Iraqi oil tanker waits at the Khawr Abd Allah canal leading up to Al-Faw port in southern Iraq, on June 6, 2024.

Analysis

No strangers to turmoil, Turkey-Iran to maintain ties under Mojtaba Khamenei

Ali IHSAN OZTURK / AFP via Getty Images

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

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

Georgian border guards work at the Darial Gorge (Verkhniy Lars) border crossing, March 1, 2010.

Russian invasion of Ukraine slams Turkey’s transportation industry

Traffic at the Turkish border crossings have come to a grinding halt after trucks en route to Russia, Belarus and Central Asia diverted routes to Turkey and Georgia following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Russian Navy's Project 22160 Patrol Vessel Dmitriy Rogachev 375 sails through the Bosphorus Strait on the way to the Black Sea past the city Istanbul as Suleymaniye mosque is seen in the background on Feb. 16, 2022.

Turkey steps up Black Sea naval activity as war rages in Ukraine

Turkey is extending its grip in the Black Sea, sending drilling ships and carrying out war games.

OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

Bus bombing brings trauma of past terror back to Turkish cities

Today's bus bombing in Bursa bears the hallmarks of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) more than five years after the group's last deadly attack in major city.

A customer leaves a currency exchange agency near Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, on Dec. 2, 2021.

Inflation storm worsens Turkey’s income distribution gap

Banks and big companies have benefited from Ankara’s controversial policy to keep interest rates low, while soaring inflation eats into the real income of the wage-earning masses.

AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images

Turkish, Israeli leaders speak on Al-Aqsa Mosque tensions

Blaming Israeli radicals and security forces for the attacks against the Palestinians, Erdogan expressed concern over the spreading of unrest to Gaza.

OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

Turkish stock market hits record high

Turkey is experiencing major economic problems, but the Istanbul stock exchange continues to rise.

SAFIN HAMED/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey launches offensive against PKK targets in northern Iraq

In a critically timed spring offensive, Turkey has hit dozens of targets associated with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party and killed 19 fighters.

Head of the Kurdistan Regional Security Council Masrour Barzani speaks during an electoral rally for the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) list, in Arbil, the capital of the northern Iraqi Kurdish autonomous region, on April 26, 2018.

Scoop: Iraqi Kurdistan prime minister to travel to Turkey

People break their fast on May 16, 2018, near Taksim Square in Istanbul.

Ramadan becomes political battleground in Turkey

Lavish Ramadan gatherings by Turkey's ruling party have fueled public outrage amid staggering inflation and skyrocketing prices.

We Will Stop Femicides Turkey

Rights group spotlighting murder of women in Turkey faces legal threat

A lawsuit threatens to silence Turkey's main voice on violence against women, the We Will Stop Femicides Platform.

Workers collect onions during the harvest on a farm, in the Polatli district of Ankara on Aug. 6, 2019.

Turkey’s farmers call for urgent support as food alarm grows

Turkey’s agricultural producers are grappling with exorbitant cost increases that threaten further blows to the country’s food production amid an already galloping inflation.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (r) welcomes Israel's President Isaac Herzog (L).

Turkey continues regional initiative with meetings with Israel, Egypt

Turkey’s foreign minister says he will gather with his Egyptian and Israeli counterparts, possibly with Defense Minister Hulusi Akar accompanying him to Israel.