The Middle East Political and Economic Affairs: Reporting and analysis of major political and economic developments in the Middle East, Turkey being a key player in the region.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his partners “must now be stopped.” Speaking at a press conference in Istanbul, Fidan said the following in response to a question about anti-Turkish rhetoric in Israel: • “Netanyahu, who has become the common enemy of humanity, the international community and security—I underline this,
It was announced by its leader, Mazloum Abdi, in Damascus on the evening of August 25 that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) had dissolved itself and joined the Syrian army. Abdi made the announcement at the Presidential Palace after meeting with President Ahmed al-Sharaa. He was wearing not guerrilla clothes but a smart suit, just
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s description of Israel’s strike on the Abu al-Duhur military airbase, near Syria’s border with Türkiye and undergoing repairs, by Israeli jets early on the morning of August 18 as a “message to Türkiye” in a statement to the Israeli Army Radio’s podcast service on the evening of August 18, further
There were two current elements missing from the summary of President Tayyip Erdoğan’s phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump on the evening of August 17, as released by the Directorate of Communications. One was the fact that the Russia-Ukraine War was not mentioned, despite Russia’s reaction to Türkiye’s arms sales to Ukraine. The other
The full text of the Defense Agreement signed between Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in Mecca on August 7 has not yet been made public. To see the full text, we will have to wait for the agreement to come before the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye (TBMM) for approval
The Joint Defense Agreement signed today, August 7, in Mecca by the leaders of Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan marks an important step in the reshaping of the Middle East by creating a new center of power in the region. Although it was emphasized that the Joint Defense Agreement signed at Al Safa Palace in
When U.S. President Donald Trump announces that he is about to launch the biggest attack yet against Iran, only to call it off at the last minute, that in itself has become newsworthy. Yet what truly matters is a single sentence he uttered while explaining aboard Air Force One why the latest strike had been
For Turkey, there are effectively two summits taking place in Ankara. One is the NATO summit, where the Alliance is expected to enter what many describe as its new “3.0 era.” The other is the bilateral meeting between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and U.S. President Donald Trump. Only about ten days ago, Trump told NATO
The Western defense alliance NATO wants its members to increase military spending at the July 7-8 Ankara Summit. But this is not simply about persuading European allies to dig deeper into their pockets if they fear Russia. The “NATO 3.0” doctrine, which will dominate the agenda as 32 leaders gather in Ankara under the hosting
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met President Tayyip Erdoğan in Istanbul on April 4. We do not know whether the timing of the visit was deliberately arranged, but since he was already in Istanbul—and as it coincided with Easter—he also visited Patriarch Bartholomew. Later, in a move that, like his Istanbul visit, had not been announced