After the October 1st bomb attack on the Interior Ministry, which is claimed by the outlawed Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) affiliated group, Ankara has adopted a more hawkish stance both politically and militarily. This hawkishness happens on two fronts, one military and the other diplomatic with two operations challenging the West. Statements from Foreign Minister Hakan
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Türkiye, from now on, regards all “infrastructure, structure, and energy facilities belonging to the PKK and YPG in Syria and Iraq as a legitimate target,” stating that two terrorists who carried out a bomb attack on the Interior Ministry on October 1 came to Türkiye from Syria. “All infrastructure,
Before the May 2023 elections, the opposition voters in Turkey focused on changing the current government, which has been trying to rule the country for more than 20 years and whose mistakes have created serious concerns about our future. In fact, a wide political spectrum ranging from right to left, ethnic nationalist to religious, which
President Tayyip Erdoğan’s day-long visit on September 25 to the Nakhchivan Autonomous Region of Azerbaijan, bordering Türkiye, is important for changing the political and military balance in the Caucasus. Erdoğan’s visit, which was decided upon the invitation of Azerbaijani President İlham Aliyev, comes on the heels of Azerbaijan’s military operation on September 19-20, which resulted
Nikol Pashinyan’s political inexperience and opportunism continue to cost Armenia dearly, while İlham Aliyev’s dynamic alliance policy and experience continue to benefit Azerbaijan. Of course, while the Armenian leadership’s supporters, particularly the US and France, are losing ground, Iran is skidding in place, if not losing ground. Meanwhile, along with Azerbaijan, Russia, Türkiye, and Israel
When President Tayyip Erdoğan mentioned the possibility of Türkiye parting ways with the European Union on his way to New York for the United Nations General Assembly, no one from the EU has so far said “Don’t go, stay; we’ll give you what you want”. Perhaps there is an expectation among the Turkish President and
President Tayyip Erdoğan said that Türkiye “can part ways with the EU if necessary”. Erdoğan’s statement came when asked about the latest Türkiye report of the European Parliament during a press conference before his departure from İstanbul to New York on September 16 to attend the United Nations General Assembly. He said: • “The European
The US administration imposed sanctions 5 Turkish companies and 1 Turkish citizen for violating US sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine war, Reuters reported on September 14. “For the past 18 months, we’ve shared our concerns with the Turkish government and private sector and informed them of the significant risks of doing business with those
Something happened to President Tayyip Erdoğan after he won the election. First, interest rates started to rise, which he said would not happen “as long as he is in charge”. Then he backtracked on his invention of the FX protected deposit scheme (KKM). His hopes of meeting US President Joe Biden at the G20 Summit
Strong defence ties and the need for geostrategic cooperation between Türkiye and the US used to provide the main resilience against problems and crises between two countries. The level of economic and trade ties, by contrast, never reflected the strategic cooperation between the two allies. In fact, Türkiye’s purchase of armaments constituted the main bulk