Turkish Domestic Politics: Analysis and forecast on all relevant developments and insight about Turkish politics with its repercussions in its neighboring countries
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
If you view NATO’s July 7–8 Ankara Summit as the founding meeting of the “New Cold War” NATO, then the legal cases against Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu no longer appear contradictory. It also fits with U.S. President Donald Trump’s renewed warnings about the “communist threat” during
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
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s June 16–17 visit to Moscow was significant in several respects. Fidan not only met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. He also conveyed a message from President Tayyip Erdoğan to Russian President Vladimir Putin, briefed the Russian side on the U.S.-Iran understanding and Türkiye’s role in it, and held talks with
The NATO Summit will be held in Ankara on July 7–8. Thanks to the summit, Ankara is also gaining a new airport. The long-underutilized Etimesgut Military Air Base has been upgraded to international airport status under the name “Ankara Airport,” capable of accommodating even the Boeing 747 used as Air Force One by U.S. President
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan declared victory in the June 7 elections. Pashinyan’s Civil Contract Party, which advocates peace with Türkiye and Azerbaijan (and, it should be added, Georgia as well), won by a clear margin over its closest rival, Samvel Karapetyan’s Russian-backed, anti-compromise Strong Armenia Party. The Armenia Alliance, led by former Prime Minister
I am writing this fully aware that Özgür Özel may now face every conceivable obstacle ahead of him — from expulsion from the CHP to the lifting of his parliamentary immunity and even imprisonment. Yet the “absolute nullity” ruling issued by the judiciary does not appear likely to benefit either Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who has been
Politics in Türkiye has seen dark days before. The country witnessed the ruling caliph-sultan collaborating with occupying armies; in the words of Nazım Hikmet, it “saw fire and betrayal.” After the transition to multi-party politics, it was shaken by coups in the Cold War atmosphere. Parliament was shut down, political parties were banned, and politicians
The Court of Appeal has ruled in favor of the “absolute nullity” and “void ab initio” lawsuit filed for the annulment of the 2023 CHP Congress in which Özgür Özel was elected to replace Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu as leader of the Republican People’s Party (CHP). In its ruling announced on May 21, the 36th Civil Chamber
In recent days, significant diplomatic activity has been observed in Turkish foreign policy both on the Western front — namely NATO and the European Union — and on the Eastern front, shaped by developments surrounding Iran and Israel. In this context, President Tayyip Erdoğan’s phone call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen came