Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan signed the presidential decree to bring the critical presidential and general elections forward to May 14, while the political parties are closing ranks in search of unlikely alliances, as even the smallest parties may have an impact in the head-to-head race. President Erdoğan, on March 10, officially set the election
Türkiye’s right-wing opposition İYİ Party leader Meral Akşener announced on March 3 that she defies the six-party opposition alliance over a presidential candidate, stirring debate that she left the alliance with her harsh tone. “I regret to say that at the point we have reached, the table of six has lost its ability to reflect
The international courtesy visits to Türkiye following the devastating earthquakes that destroyed a dozen cities continue with diplomatic turns. On February 27, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry was welcomed by Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in Adana. Following the 2013 coup in his country, he was the first Egyptian Foreign Minister to visit Türkiye in a
The series of earthquakes that shook Türkiye and snuffed out lives has forced President and Justice and Development Party (AKP) leader Tayyip Erdoğan to change his electoral tactics. Both the impression from the ruling circles in Ankara and Erdoğan’s recent moves and outbursts suggest that the president is preparing to turn the state’s earthquake repair
The February 6 Kahramanmaraş double-earthquake not only shook Türkiye with terrible loss of life and destruction. It also upset the political balance and increased economic uncertainty ahead of a critical election. Politically, President Tayyip Erdoğan and his twenty-odd year old AK Party government have been the most affected by this trauma. Erdoğan has a difficult
Among the contradictions Turkey faces ahead of the crucial 2023 elections is the gap between political activity that is in compliance with the Constitution and “realpolitik,” the German term for “politics in accordance with circumstances, not principles.” This is most evident in the question of whether President and ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) leader
One of the most prominent questions in Turkish public debates about the upcoming 2023 presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey is undoubtedly who will be the presidential candidates. Even though President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has not yet announced his candidacy, his name is almost certain for his People’s Alliance. When it comes to the opposition,
Greece is adopting a hostile attitude against Türkiye and “it is time for NATO to put a stop to this spoilt behavior” Turkish Minister of National Defence Hulusi Akar said, at the 2022 evaluation press briefing at the Ministry’s headquarters in Ankara on December 24. In the meeting, the Turkish Minister made it clear that
“Imamoğlu is a big bite, he sticks in your throat. We would choke you, we will choke you” This is how main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu called out Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu, who said that he could dismiss Istanbul Metropolitan Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu from his position once the appeals courts would
The leaders of the six opposition parties that have formed an alliance against President Tayyip Erdoğan in the upcoming elections marked the start of their election campaign on December 15 with a large rally in Istanbul in support of Istanbul Metropolitan Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu. After the mega city’s mayor was sentenced to prison and faced