The Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) ratified Sweden’s NATO membership protocol, ending over a year of dispute over Ankara’s veto. 346 MPs participated in the vote on January 23, with 287 votes in favor of ratifying Sweden’s NATO membership, 55 against and four abstentions. Ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and
Türkiye has approved Sweden’s participation in NATO’s Steadfast Defender 2024 military exercise, which is due to start this week, even though the nordic country is not yet a member. Steadfast Defender 2024, which starts this week and will last for three months, will be NATO’s largest military exercise since the end of the Cold War.
President Tayyip Erdoğan is on the verge of one of the most difficult decisions of his political life. He has to take this strategic step with high political risk not only as a president but also as a rulnig Justice and Development Party (AKP) leader in the Turkish Grand National Assembly. Parliament’s winter recess ends
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Jan. 6 in Istanbul as a part of his week-long diplomatic tour amidst escalating tensions in the Middle East, particularly in the context of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. The high-level meeting attended by Fidan, National Intelligence
The Turkish Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee approved Sweden’s NATO membership protocol at its meeting on December 26. Once the approval is voted by the General Assembly of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, Türkiye will be deemed to have ratified Sweden’s NATO membership. Political sources say that the plenary vote is likely to take place on
The Turkish Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee announced on December 22 that it has added Sweden’s NATO accession protocol to their December 26 meeting agenda. The Foreign Affairs Commission announced on December 22 that it has included the “Proposal for a Law on the Approval of the Ratification of the Protocol on the Accession of the
Germany’s national airline Lufthansa announced on December 19 that it signed a $9 billion deal with US aircraft manufacturer Boeing for the purchase of 100 aircraft and with Airbus for the purchase of 60 aircraft. Four days earlier, on December 15, Turkish Airlines (THY) announced that it had signed its largest-ever aircraft purchase agreement with
Yesterday, on December 14, there were two important developments that show that Türkiye’s relations with both the United States and the European Union have become even more strained over the common denominator of Sweden’s NATO membership. One was the EU leaders’ summit’s acceptance of Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia as candidate members, and the other was
Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan is in Athens today for talks with Greek Prime Minister Kiryakos Mitsotakis. The High Level Cooperation meeting, which has not been held for seven years, will also take place on this occasion. With steps such as the mutual reduction of military exercises in the Aegean Sea, the world could have a
Turkish Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee decided to postpone the deliberations on Sweden’s Accession Protocol to NATO, stating that they needed more information from Sweden about its commitments at the first meeting after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan signed the protocol for the parliamentary approval. The Foreign Affairs Committee on November 16 voted to adjourn the meeting