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

Turkey

Turkey

March 31, 2026

Ankara 8:17 pm

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German soldiers stand to attention in front of a German Patriot missile launcher at the Gazi barracks in Kahramanmaras, southern Turkey on March 25, 2014.

Turkey says NATO defenses intercepted fourth missile from Iran

Turkey said NATO air defenses neutralized a ballistic munition launched from Iran that entered its airspace, marking the fourth such interception since March.

Sedat Suna/Getty Images

Analysis

Energy storage keeps Turkey stable, but long war risks fragile economy

Turkey avoids an immediate energy crunch thanks to storage and diversified supply, but soaring prices and prolonged disruption threaten inflation.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

A handing over of command ceremony at Union III Camp in the Green Zone of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on May 22, 2025.

Turkey confirms Iraq troop withdrawal as NATO pulls back due to Iran war

The confirmation of the withdrawal came as part of NATO’s decision to withdraw its forces in its Iraq mission amid Iran war.

Latest News

Turkey, UK advance $11B Eurofighter jet deal with training agreement

Two Typhoon Eurofighter jets of the Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) of the German air force (Luftwaffe) take off for training during a media day at the military Laage Air Base, northeastern Germany, on March 11, 2026.

Journalist who investigated Erdogan’s son jailed on 'disinformation' charges in Turkey

Journalists gather outside the Ankara courthouse on March 10, 2020 behind a banner reading in Turkish "journalism is not crime," to protest over jailing of journalists, sparked by the recent arrest of OdaTV's news director and a journalist's report on the funeral of a Turkish intelligence officer apparently killed in Libya.

US proposes Vance-Ghalibaf talks with Turkey as one intermediary: Source

Ghalibaf Fidan

Analysis

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

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

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

What's next for Turkish-Iraqi ties after deadly drone strike?

The killing of Iraqi border guards in a Turkish drone strike undermines Baghdad’s traditional flexibility toward Ankara at a time when Turkey’s Arab adversaries are seeking to draw Iraq to their side.

Demonstrators wave Turkish and Palestinian flags during a rally at Yenikap? Square, in Istanbul, to protest against the US-made peace plan, also known as the Agreement of the Century,on Februay 9, 2020. (Photo by Ozan KOSE / AFP) (Photo by OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey threatens to cut ties with UAE over Israel normalization as feud continues

Turkey and the UAE disagree on the Turkey-Kurdish conflict, Libya, drilling in the eastern Mediterranean and more.

Turkey grows increasingly isolated in eastern Mediterranean dispute with Greece

Recep Tayyip Erdogan's assertive stance in the eastern Mediterranean maritime dispute is being challenged by a bloc comprising Greece, Cyprus, Egypt, Israel and France.

Economic policy reversal fraught with political risks for Erdogan

Ankara’s bid to warm the pandemic-hit economy has backfired, forcing a policy reversal that threatens to aggravate popular grievances and heighten political risks for Erdogan.

ANTALYA, TURKEY - JULY 12: Tourists take part in an aqua aerobics session at an all inclusive Russian themed resort on July 12, 2016 in Antalya, Turkey. Russian President Vladimir Putin last month officially lifted travel restrictions on tourism to Turkey. Russia had banned agency tours to Turkey after a diplomatic crisis erupted when Turkey downed a Russian jet on the Turkey - Syrian border in November 2015. Turkey's tourism is currently in crisis after a series of terrorist attacks, most recently the bom

Turkey’s 'healthy tourism' efforts tested as foreign tourists trickle in

Some 40,000 Russian holidaymakers have thrown a life jacket to Turkey’s main touristic hub of Antalya, while other coastal areas count on locals to keep afloat.

TOPSHOT - A school girl in her uniform stands in the corridor during the first day back at school on September 19, 2016 in Istanbul. - Turkish children returned to school for the first time since July's attempted coup -- but tens of thousands of their teachers have been sacked or suspended for suspected links to the putschists or to Kurdish rebels. (Photo by OZAN KOSE / AFP) (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkish officials delay school reopenings as new daily COVID-19 cases remain above 1,100

Turkish health officials delayed plans to reopen schools later this month, as medical experts warn of rising infection rates throughout the country.

Can Erdogan reciprocate Macron’s Beirut stunt?

Macron’s call for a “new order” in Lebanon conflicts with Erdogan’s regional ambitions, but the climate in Lebanon is no longer as welcoming to Turkey’s president as it was a decade ago.

The Bayraktar TB2 drone is pictured flying on December 16, 2019 at Gecitkale Airport in Famagusta in the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). - The Turkish military drone was delivered to northern Cyprus today amid growing tensions over Turkey's deal with Libya that extended its claims to the gas-rich eastern Mediterranean. The Bayraktar TB2 drone landed in Gecitkale Airport in Famagusta around 0700 GMT, an AFP correspondent said, after the breakaway northern Cyprus government approve

Iraq tells Turkey defense minister to stay away after its officers killed in drone strike

Iraq cancelled a planned Baghdad visit by Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and summoned the Turkish ambassador after a a Turkish drone attack killed two senior Iraqi officials.

TOPSHOT - An armed policeman standds guard after migrants disembarked from the Motor Tanker El Hiblu 1 that was hijacked by migrants in Valletta's Grand Harbour on March 28, 2019, after Maltese armed forces took control of the vessel. - The intervention came after migrants hijacked a merchant ship that rescued them off the coast of Libya and ordered it to head towards Italy, the Italian government said on March 27, 2019. (Photo by JONATHAN BORG / AFP) (Photo by JONATHAN BORG/AFP via Getty Images)

Can Malta’s diplomacy tip balance in Libya toward Turkey?

The diplomatic track ongoing between Turkey, Malta and Libya’s Tripoli government has sparked questions whether Valletta’s diplomatic support can serve as a much needed jumping point for Ankara to break the Libya stalemate, but the European country’s only focus in the talks seem to be limited with prevention of illegal immigration.

Turkey to issue new drilling licenses in eastern Mediterranean amid rising tensions

Following escalations Aug. 10 between Turkey and Greece over contested areas of the eastern Mediterranean, Ankara officials said they would issue new exploration licenses in the region this month.

Turkish helicopters fly over the Cudi mountain during an attack on an outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) camp 30 October 2007 in the Cudi mountains, Sirnak province, near the Turkish-Iraqi border, south-eastern Turkey. Iraqi Kurdish leader Massud Barzani has urged Turkish Kurd rebels to renounce violence, but insisted he will take no "orders" from Turkey to crack down on their bases in the autonomous northern Iraqi region he administers. AFP PHOTO / MUSTAFA OZER (Photo credit should read MUSTAFA OZER/AF

Turkish drone strike kills two senior Iraqi officers, army says

Officials say the Tuesday strike targeted a meeting between Iraqi border officials and Kurdish militants.

TOPSHOT - This picture taken on August 4, 2020, shows a boy sits on a school bench after his village and school were flooded by the Ilosu Dam separating the newly constructed Hasankeyf town from the remains of the ancient town of the same name and its archaeological sites which were flooded as part of the Ilõsu Dam project located along the Tigris River in the Batman Province in southeastern Turkey. - Despite years of protests by residents and activists, the town on the banks of the Tigris River disappeared

What trump cards is Iraq pulling against Turkey to secure water quota?

Turkey refuses to abide by the protocols and treaties signed with Iraq on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers acting as if they are local rivers.