While the latest election polls showed that the meltdown in the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its “People Alliance” partner Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) votes continued, not only the economy but also the judiciary ring alarm bells. “We have an issue with the right to a fair trial,” the Constitutional Court (AYM) president
When the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) came to power, one of their promises was to fight against “3Ys” that are prohibitions, poverty and corruption. In the first year of their rule, certain progress was made in these areas with an expectation of strengthening relations with the European Union (EU). When the EU hopes
Turkey’s Minister of National Defense, Hulusi Akar, rebuked Greece for increasing armament expenditures and “provocative” foreign policy, stating that Turkey’s disputes with Greece over the expansion of territorial waters and the violation of the islands’ disarmament status continue. “There is armament, against whom? We say, what is this armament for? Too much for normal defense,
Turkey entered the year 2022 with an unprecedented rain of hikes. We started to discuss inflation, price hikes, the rising cost of living, and poverty. Still, there is one more thing to add to these discussions: energy poverty! This term has been one of Turkey’s issues for over a decade and stands before us as
Whenever President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his People Alliance partner Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli meet, something changes in Turkey. This time President Erdoğan visited Bahçeli at his apartment in Ankara on Jan. 5, just like last year. President’s Communication office announced that the visit was to celebrate the nationalist leader’s birthday, which
Turkey is going through unprecedented days. At the beginning of December, while the exchange rate increased without any apparent barrier, the government raised the minimum wage by 50 percent. According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TÜİK), the annual increase in the consumer price index (CPI) was only 21 percent, and opposition parties were demanding an
On January 4, when the people of Kazakhstan took to the streets to protest against fuel and food hikes, President Tayyip Erdoğan was addressing the ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) provincial leaders in Ankara. The opposition was at his target: “They say they take to the streets to fill the squares without feeling any
It is routine to write the highest/lowest such and such indicator of such and such year. No surprise and I will start by explaining the inflation rates announced on January 3 with a few boring figures. The currently used consumer price index has been published since 2003. The highest monthly inflation in this entire period
Political polarization has increased, and two main political blocks have solidified their base in Turkey the Kadir Has University Turkey Trends research showed, as Turkey seems to have entered the election atmosphere in the eyes of voters. “Voting bases are consolidating. There was a serious solidification among those who voted for the parties. We see
The political calculations in Ankara have become more or less clear: the opposition will delay announcing their presidential candidate unless the government will respond to their early election call positively. Last month, I had the opportunity to meet with the leaders of three opposition parties: main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, İYİ