AKP PARTY GROUP ADOPTS NEW REGULATIONS ON PRESS
The AKP's parliamentary group has instructed ministers to refrain from speaking to journalists before the party's weekly group meetings, according to a written directive sent to ministers on May 18.
Analysis
In-Depth Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
DEFECTIONS, CONFESSIONS AND NOW CLOSURE: THE CHP'S MOUNTING TROUBLES
The CHP is facing an unprecedented convergence of crises one after the other. Afyonkarahisar Mayor Burcu Köksal has defected to the AKP. Jailed Uşak Mayor Özkan Yalım and Antalya Mayor Muhittin Böcek have applied for the effective remorse law, alleging they paid CHP Chair Özgür Özel and his close ally MP Veli Ağbaba in exchange for nomination in the municipal elections. The allegations have raised the spectre of closure proceedings against the party — with Özel increasingly in the crosshairs.
SAUDI ARAMCO IN TALKS WITH OYAK TO PARTNER IN FUEL DISTRIBUTION
Saudi oil giant Saudi Aramco is in talks with OYAK Group, the country’s largest private pension fund, over a possible partnership involving one of Turkey’s biggest fuel distribution networks, according to journalist Olcay Aydilek.
NUMBERS TELL A DIFFERENT STORY ON REAL UNEMPLOYMENT
The unemployment rate remained slightly above 8% in the first quarter of the year, according to TurkStat — yet independent surveys drawing on the same data continue to challenge the official picture.
RISING FORECASTS, OPPORTUNIST PRICING
Turkey's inflation and high cost of living show no sign of easing. A new Central Bank survey points to rising price expectations — coming just days after the bank officially revised its own forecasts upward.
TURKEY AND GERMANY REOPEN A STRATEGIC CHAPTER AFTER 12 YEARS
A mechanism between Turkey and Germany that had been halted over a decade ago came back to life on May 18, when Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with his German counterpart Johann Wadephul in Berlin.
CONTROVERSIAL COMMENTATOR ARRESTED IN ILLEGAL BETTING PROBE SAYS INVESTIGATION IS 'CORRECT'
Pro-government television commentator Rasim Ozan Kütahyalı was remanded in custody on May 18 as part of a wide illegal betting and money laundering investigation led by the Adana Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.
AKP PREPARES TO LAUNCH ELECTION CAMPAIGN ON 25th ANNIVERSARY
The AKP has begun laying the groundwork for the 2028 presidential and parliamentary elections, with plans to formally launch its campaign on Aug. 14 — the 25th anniversary of the party’s foundation.
COURT RULING OUSTS ÖZEL, HANDS CHP BACK TO KILIÇDAROĞLU
A fresh blow has landed on the CHP as a court annulled the party's 2023 congress — the elective gathering at which the party leadership, including its chair, changed hands following an election defeat — ordering the party's administration to revert to its pre-congress configuration.
TURKEY’S UNREQUITED LOVE WITH CHINA
The way Donald Trump was received in Beijing by Xi Jinping showed China’s increased power and confidence in its relations with the US. Trump’s flattery of his host was a clear indication that China will no longer be regarded as an underdog that Trump can push around with arbitrary tariff increases.
WHAT ANKARA DOES NOT PUT ON THE BROCHURE
A city’s cultural field does not stop at its administrative boundary. If Ankara reveals itself in layers, some of its most telling ones begin once the city has thinned into road, valley and plateau.
WHILE ABDULLAH ÖCALAN IS STILL ALIVE
The pace of the Kurdish peace process, and the model it will follow have now become intertwined with Abdullah Öcalan's lifespan.