Analysis – Turkey In Depth – Smart, informed focus on the stories that matter

Guest Voices Apr 18, 2025

CENTRAL ASIAN REPUBLICS A LA MODE?

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.

Editorial Team

Portrait of the Week Apr 11, 2025

MAHMUT TANAL: SOUNDING THE SIREN

What is an ambulance for? What role does it play in our lives? An ambulance is a vehicle to transfer patients and the injured between hospitals. It also carries a team and equipment capable of providing urgent medical care. Because of the critical condition of those it transports, it moves through traffic with its sirens blaring. Very well, and who is Mahmut Tanal? What role does he play in our lives? And what does he have to do with an ambulance? Tanal is an MP from the CHP. A lawyer.

Anonymous

Word of the Week Apr 11, 2025

CUNTA

In Turkish politics, few words are as loaded—or as likely to provoke presidential rage—as “cunta.” From its etymological roots in the Spanish resistance to Napoleonic rule (junta, meaning a council), cunta has acquired a sinister sheen along the way. Today, it conjures images not of patriotic committees, but of tanks on boulevards, generals behind microphones, and constitutions suspended by decree (Bet you’ve heard that last one before). So when CHP Chair Özgür Özel recently accused the ruling bloc of staging a “civilian coup”—sivil darbe—and likened the government's tightening grip to a junta mentality, it landed like a Molotov cocktail in Turkey’s ever-combustible political arena.

Editorial Team

Deciphering Turkish Diplomacy Apr 11, 2025

TURKISH DIPLOMACY IN RETREAT

In contrast to Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek’s positive messages following the EU - Turkey High-Level Economic Dialogue, the meeting, which took place after a six-year hiatus, ended without a substantial road map to revive relations. As developments in transatlantic relations appeared to be raising Turkey’s value as a geostrategic asset, Ankara hoped to seize the opportunity to improve relations with the EU. Yet, European enthusiasm towards Turkey’s military strength remained limited, while the arrest of Istanbul's Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu has made life difficult for those favoring a speedier rapprochement.

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Deciphering Turkish Diplomacy Apr 4, 2025

INWARD TURMOIL, OUTWARD TALKS: THE PARADOX OF TURKEY’S EU MOMENT

“Turkey gives its children no chance to concern themselves with anything but itself,” said Ahmet Hamdi Tanpınar, a prominent Turkish poet and novelist who died in 1962. While the world was preoccupied with Donald Trump’s tariffs and the international media’s coverage focused on the reactions, Turkey was only discussing the opposition's call for an economic boycott implemented on April 2.

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Portrait of the Week Apr 4, 2025

MAHİR POLAT CASE: “SAVING THE CITY FROM DEATH”

We begin with a cliché frequently heard in a negative context when discussing Turkey’s political and social developments: “This can’t be happening too!” During the operation targeting Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, nearly 100 people—one of them Mahir Polat—were detained. Who is Mahir Polat? He is the deputy secretary general of the municipality and a close member of İmamoğlu’s core team. That much may be understandable. But Polat’s imprisonment triggered yet another “this can’t be happening” moment.

Anonymous

Deciphering Turkish Diplomacy Mar 28, 2025

TRUMP’S SILENCE ON İMAMOĞLU DEEPENS ANKARA’S VULNERABILITIES

The cancellation of the Istanbul mayor’s diploma, followed by his arrest, came two days after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke on the phone with U.S. President Donald Trump. For many, this was not a coincidence. This telephone conversation was underreported, according to Steve Witcoff. “Good news is coming from Turkey,” added Trump’s special envoy on March 22, when thousands had taken to the streets to protest the blatant assault against Turkish democracy.

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Guest Voices Mar 28, 2025

FROM THE OLD GOOD DAYS OF GEZİ TO SARAÇHANE

Turkey has witnessed dramatic days for the second time in the past twenty years. Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu’s detention sparked outrage and led to one of the largest protests since the iconic 2013 Gezi protests. I spent my days covering rallies in front of the Istanbul Municipality building in Saraçhane, 12 years after staying for a month in Gezi Park. This experience has prompted me to compare the two.

Editorial Team

Portrait of the Week Mar 28, 2025

CODES BEHIND İMAMOĞLU’S CHOICE OF NURİ ASLAN

Following Ekrem İmamoğlu’s arrest and removal from office, Nuri Aslan was elected as acting mayor of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. The election took place in the municipal council, but it was clearly İmamoğlu who selected Aslan. Now, everyone is trying to decode why İmamoğlu opted for such an unfamiliar name. One of the key reasons for picking Aslan is the “quiet strength” he embodies. He’s been walking the path with İmamoğlu in Istanbul for years—but always behind the scenes, never seeking the spotlight.

Anonymous

Deciphering Turkish Diplomacy Mar 21, 2025

REAL TURKEY – EU DIRTY DEAL IS ON ITS WAY

Every time Turkey takes a big step backward and away from democratic rule, those familiar with Turkish-EU relations tend to also blame the Merkel-Sarkozy duo, who reined back Turkey’s accession talks in the mid-2000s at a time when the AKP was undertaking sweeping reforms to reach universal standards. It was the most serious and bitter wake-up call for those who still had faith in European values, that no matter what Turkey would do, it would never be considered a member of the European family, despite its NATO and Council of Europe membership.

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Portrait of the Week Mar 21, 2025

CITY OF ISTANBUL AND BIG ROUNDUP

'Whoever loses Istanbul also loses Turkey.' These are the words of President Erdoğan. When did he say it? Eight years ago. Who was he addressing? His own party members, who had begun to sense that the spell was breaking, and realize that things were not going well. If we read this statement in reverse, the conclusion is clear: 'Whoever wins Istanbul also wins Turkey.' Since making this statement, Erdoğan has lost Istanbul twice. In the 2019 and 2024 local elections, the opposition took control of the city.

Anonymous

Portrait of the Week Mar 14, 2025

DEVLET BAHÇELİ’S TABLE

“Devletin Başına Devlet Gelecek” (The State Will Have Devlet as Its Leader). Do we still remember this slogan? How many of us do? It was the most important slogan the MHP created for their leader, Devlet Bahçeli. It has been more than ten years, maybe even longer, since this slogan was last heard. Many have linked its disappearance to Bahçeli’s and, consequently, MHP’s strong and open support for President Erdoğan since 2016. That might be true, but it cannot be explained by this alone.

Anonymous

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