Newsletter: Daily Briefing US pauses Hormuz escort mission as Trump cites progress on Iran talks A tentative diplomatic opening with Iran emerges as the US sustains its pressure campaign. By Ezgi Akin In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO
Turkey, Armenia agree to restore medieval bridge in normalization push Ankara is pursuing normalization with Armenia ahead of June parliamentary elections in a thaw also positioned to advance its broader Middle Corridor ambitions. Turkey
Turkey hosts Kuwaiti FM as UAE's OAPEC exit fuels Gulf rift Kuwait's top diplomat visited Turkey as the Gulf rift deepens following the UAE’s exit from OPEC and its affiliated alliances, forcing Ankara to balance ties between Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi. Turkey
Analysis Iraq’s Zaidi offers economic promise for Turkey but unknowns loom Iraq’s prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, is expected to sustain growing economic and strategic ties with Turkey thanks to his business-oriented approach, though uncertainty over his political stance could test cooperation on sensitive issues. By Barin Kayaoglu In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security
Newsletter: City Pulse Istanbul “Form-Craft-Activism” spotlights the labor behind making By Nazlan Ertan In Izmir and Istanbul, reporting on culture
Will new Turkish government pursue Armenian opening? Opening the Turkey-Armenia border would benefit both countries economically, but ongoing tensions and the results of the June 7 elections in Turkey do not bode well for such a move. Turkey
Kurds fight Kurds in Syria The Islamic State may be a bitter enemy of the Kurdish forces in Syria, but many Kurds — mostly from Turkey — are fighting in the jihadist ranks. Syria
Cairo's shifting stance on Syrian crisis Cairo and its regional ally Riyadh have not been seeing eye to eye when it comes to the Syrian crisis and ways to resolve it, amid bitterness on the part of Syrian opposition factions that accuse Cairo of not strongly contributing to finding a solution to the crisis. Saudi Arabia
Turkish judiciary halts school firings Turkey’s top administrative court has canceled provisions that laid the ground for the purge of some 8,000 principals in public schools and their replacement with government partisans. Turkey
Can PKK, Turkey’s Hezbollah reconcile? Resurging violence between two old Kurdish adversaries in Turkey’s southeast, the PKK and the Islamist Hezbollah, has generated fears of renewed Kurdish fratricide in the region. Syria
After elections, Erdogan’s shadow still looms Given his continuing hold over the AKP, negotiations for a coalition government could be stymied by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan if developments take a turn he does not favor. Turkey
'Bogus Muslims' exposed for 'fake it 'til you make it' attitude Muslims faking sudden commitments to a religious lifestyle for political and financial gain are facing backlash from pious Muslims as well as criticism from secularists. Turkey
Did Ankara-backed group attack Turkish Kurds? A string of unresolved attacks against Kurds has raised suspicions that the Turkish government is training and recruiting jihadist militants from the Syrian conflict as paramilitary forces to target government opponents. Syria
After Tell Abyad, what's next for PYD? While Ankara is confused what to do after the victory of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and Free Syrian Army in Tell Abyad, the PYD is deciding on its next target. Syria
Erdogan sees threat from Kurdish gains in Syria Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gives priority to battle Kurdish “terror organizations” over the Islamic State; the Islamic State's scorched-earth practices in Kobani; the Druze lobby in Israel. Israel
Demirel showed best and worst of Turkey Few people in Turkey liked former President Suleyman Demirel, yet the statesman, who died June 16, represented his compatriots’ best and worst sides. Turkey
Putin, Erdogan meet face to face, but don't see eye to eye The recent meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Azerbaijan appears to reflect a mutual irritation between the two parties. Turkey