THE STATE AND THE STAGE
Foreign policy has always liked theater, costumes and masks. Peace conferences, state visits, summit handshakes, seating plans, flags, solemn declarations. All belong to the choreography of international life.
Analysis
In-Depth Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
ONLY 233 F-16S LEFT IN TURKISH ARMY
The Air Force, which has been unable to procure new fighter jets for over 20 years because of foreign policy obstacles, lost another fighter jet on Feb. 25, reducing the number of F-16s in its inventory to 233. Thus, the number of fighter jets in active service fell from approximately 450 to 252 over the same period.
CHP’S FOREIGN POLICY DILEMMA: RULES OVER PERSONALITY IN A TRUMP ERA
The CHP emphasizes moving away from personalized, leader-to-leader foreign policy toward one grounded in formal institutions, rules, transparency, and oversight.
ISOT DIPLOMACY: WHY STATES KEEP ASKING FOR “A BIT MORE HEAT?”
There are nations that approach foreign policy the way sensible adults approach dinner: they taste, they adjust, they stop before their eyes start watering in public.
U.S. SEIZURE OF MADURO RAISES “INTERNAL FRONT” CONTROVERSY IN TURKEY
The abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by the United States has reignited a fierce debate in Turkey over the concept of the “internal front,” a term increasingly used by the government to call for national unity amid shifting global dynamics. The notion of “fortifying the internal front” — defined by the government as acting in unison on national issues — gained prominence alongside changes in the international order. It was President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan who first introduced the phrase in August 2024, and has repeatedly emphasized it over the past year as a shield against foreign policy challenges and a necessity for “national survival.”
KARAHAN: POLICY WILL BE TIGHTENED IF TARGET IS MISSED
Central Bank Governor Fatih Karahan said that if the inflation target is missed, monetary policy will be tightened.
CENTRAL BANK CUTS INTEREST RATES
The Central Bank reduced its policy interest rate, the one-week repo auction rate, from 43% to 40.5%, the second straight cut.
FROM SOMALIA TO BURKINA FASO, TURKEY BUILDS PARTNERSHIP OVER PATERNALISM
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.
CENTRAL BANK CUTS RATES BY 3 POINTS DESPITE ONGOING INFLATION RISKS
The Central Bank lowered its one-week repo rate from 46% to 43% on July 24, despite warning signs that inflation pressures persist. This was the first cut following the April rate hike. The Monetary Policy Committee also reduced the overnight lending rate from 49% to 46% and the overnight borrowing rate from 44.5% to 41.5%. While June’s core inflation trend remained unchanged, preliminary indicators pointed to a temporary rise in July inflation due to month-specific factors.
TURKEY’S ECONOMIC FUTURE: AT THE CROSSROADS OF GLOBAL REORDERING
As the dust settles from the economic shocks of the pandemic, the Ukraine war, and the breakdown of traditional supply chains, a new global order is taking shape—one where economic policy is no longer just about growth and trade but about power, resilience, and survival. Amid this transformation, Turkey stands at a crossroads: a country historically anchored to the West but increasingly drawn to non-Western alignments, and now forced to choose a direction in a fractured world.
ERDOĞAN REAPS BENEFITS OF HIS GOOD TIES WITH TRUMP
The most important foreign policy development of this week was incontestably U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to lift sanctions on Syria during his visit to Saudi Arabia.
NEW CODES OF TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY
When a Canadian camera was found in a downed Turkish drone in the war in Nagorno Karabakh, the Canadian government canceled the product’s export permit in April 2021. “The use of technology in this way is inconsistent with Canada’s foreign policy and Turkey’s end-user commitments,” said the country’s then-foreign minister.