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.
A SILENT STORM WITHIN THE MHP
Imagine an organized crime network, protected and fed by political connections that it steadily expands.
DOES ERDOĞAN WANT A REGIME WITHOUT ELECTIONS?
Let us say it plainly at the outset: the answer is no. This is bigger than his wishes or reluctance. For more than a year, based on the operations against CHP municipalities, there has been a slew of analyses claiming that 'Erdoğan will not hold elections'. Similar analyses — citing earthquakes and wars as justification for him avoiding elections — also proved wrong before the 2023 elections and before.
RESURRECTION OF FOUR SEAS PROJECT
While Ankara is seeking to strengthen its ties with the Washington administration, U.S. Ambassador to Ankara and Special Envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack has dusted off an old project aimed at transforming Turkey and Syria into a hub for energy security as an alternative to the Persian Gulf, caught in the crossfire for a month.
DRUG OPERATIONS RESUME, CELEBRITIES AND BUSINESS LEADERS DETAINED
Turkish authorities launched a new anti-drug operation on March 25, detaining high-profile figures from the worlds of sports, business, and entertainment. The raids marked the end of a brief lull in such operations following the appointment of the new interior and justice ministers in February.
BAKIM / CARE
Bakım, or care, is one of those deceptively soft words, the sugar coating over a complex vitamin pill, a soft towel draped over the hard machinery of an economy. It suggests tenderness and love. What it rarely suggests is exhaustion, lost income, or the quiet arithmetic of inequality.
ADVENTURES IN TURKISH JOURNALISM: THE STORY OF ALİCAN AND İSMAİL
The poet Nazım Hikmet writes in his poem The Postman: “The news of humankind, of the world, of the homeland / The news of the tree, the wolf, the bird / At dawn or in the middle of the night / I carried to people in the middle of my heart...”
TURKEY’S GREY LIST RISK FADES
Turkey is unlikely to return to the “grey list” of jurisdictions that don’t do enough to fight money laundering.
CENTRAL BANK SPENDS $23.5B IN TWO WEEKS TO DEFEND LIRA
The central bank spent approximately $23.5 billion in foreign exchange interventions during the first two weeks of the Iran war to defend the Turkish lira.
NO DISINFLATION IN SIGHT AS ENERGY COSTS AND EXPECTATIONS SURGE
The government’s efforts to cool down the Turkish economy are falling short as rising energy prices and deteriorating market confidence push inflation targets out of reach.
HORMUZ SHOCK IN GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAINS AND ITS IMPACT ON TURKISH ECONOMY
The war that erupted on Feb. 28, between Iran, the U.S. and Israel has sparked deep global uncertainty, as Iran targets U.S. bases and strategic energy infrastructure across the Gulf.
WALKING ON A TIGHTROPE BETWEEN WASHINGTON AND TEHRAN
The war on Iran has once again revealed the confusing complexities of Turkey’s geostrategic positioning as a middle power between Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.