Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
As Turkey prepares to purchase 12 second-hand Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets from Qatar, a series of defense industry cooperation agreements were signed between the two countries, further deepening bilateral relations.
A new U.S. tariff move targeting countries that do business with Iran is placing billions of dollars of Turkey’s trade at risk, with exports to the United States and energy trade with Iran most exposed.
Turkey is watching the protests in Iran with growing concern, warning that U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of intervention could trigger dangerous regional consequences as Ankara pushes de-escalation through diplomacy with Gulf countries.
Training for Syrian military forces by the Turkish Army has begun in accordance with the Joint Training and Advisory MoU signed between the two countries on Aug. 13, the Defense Ministry announced.
Turkish democracy is the casualty of Europe’s rediscovery of Turkey’s strategic value. To better understand the context of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s visit to Ankara next week, one has to go back to the end of the Cold War. Whereas European countries have benefited from the peace dividend, the contrary happened for Turkey in the aftermath of the fall of the Iron Curtain. After enjoying the relative stability of the bipolar order of the Cold War era, Turkey found itself in the midst of several conflict zones. While most European countries downsized their defense budgets, Turkey had no such luxury. The fight against separatist terrorism, the turbulence created by the Gulf War, and regional conflicts like the ones in the Caucasus dictated the maintenance of a big and well-equipped army.
When the AKP came to power it had to prove to the outside world that it was not an Islamist party. The way to convince Western capitals went through luring in Israel and the Jewish lobby. By 2008, the party had consolidated power internally and received a high degree of acceptance from the Western capitals, which led to overconfidence. When the Arab Spring began, the AKP did not have to hide its true ideological leaning. Convinced that the moment for political Islam had finally come, the AKPs ruling elites did not hide their ambition to lead Muslim Brotherhood to power in Middle Eastern countries.
Turkey and Egypt conducted their first joint military exercise in the Eastern Mediterranean after a 13-year hiatus, between Sept. 22-26. The two countries also signed an agreement in August on the joint production of unmanned aerial vehicles capable of vertical takeoff and landing.
For the past decade, Turkey’s Africa policy has favored partnership — co-designed projects, capacity building, and trade — over extractive habits associated with colonial legacies. Two countries once written off as “failed states,” Somalia and Burkina Faso, illustrate this shift. Both are edging back toward firmer state capacity under locally led agendas, with Turkey positioned as a security and development partner rather than a patron.
ASSAN, one of Turkey’s top private-sector ammunition producers and an exporter to more than 60 countries, is under scrutiny following allegations of illegal staffing, supply delays, fraud, and improper transfer of state-developed defense technologies, according to Cumhuriyet daily.
The debate kicked off following an article by journalist Zeynep Gürcanlı, who asked why Turkey did not join the statement issued by the Hague Group during their meeting in Bogota on July 16. Turkey was among 30 countries at the Bogota conference, yet opted not to sign the statement, which included measures against Israel. Among these measures are the denial of arms to Israel, a ban on ships transporting such arms, and a review of public contracts for possible links to companies that benefit from the Israeli occupation.
The Central Asian Republics of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have been on the radar of those who follow international relations due to two recent developments. Traditionally, the Central Asian Republics, rich in natural resources in a geo-strategic location, have been in the Russian sphere of influence and Russia still tries to exert dominance over them. However, nearly all have started to diversify their relations with third countries and regional groupings such as China, the U.S., the EU and Turkey.
Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs continue to shake the global economy and wreak havoc. Although President Trump announced a 90-day pause for most countries on April 9, letting markets soar after days of economic turmoil, he decided to hit China with further tariffs of an unprecedented 125%. There is no question that this will deepen the trade war with China. Regardless of the tariff pause, all major countries are still reflecting on worst-case scenarios. It is highly disputable whether President Trump will achieve his declared goal of striking fair and balanced trade deals with America’s partners. Let us hope that common sense will prevail and tariffs will be mutually lowered to reasonable levels through negotiations. However, given President Trump’s dithering, there is nothing but turmoil and chaos to be expected on the horizon.