Analysis
Smart, independent reporting on Turkey's politics, economy and foreign affairs.
The first bilateral visit by a Canadian prime minister yields deals on defense, energy and air transport as Ottawa seeks to reduce its reliance on the US and makes a sharp U-turn toward finding alternative partners.
More than one and a half years into US President Donald Trump’s second term, despite repeated positive messages from both sides regarding lifting the arms embargo on Turkey, neither Ankara nor Washington has taken steps to meet their commitments.
While Trump signals to lift the arms embargo on Turkey, experts are discussing whether it will come at the expense of the Kaan project.
Unwilling to risk the Republicans losing their representative power, Ankara has accelerated its efforts to push the US to lift its arms embargo.
One of the most concrete steps yet in the normalization process between Turkey and Armenia—launched in 2021—has been taken with a move toward direct trade between the two countries. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is heading into a June 7 election widely seen as a vote of confidence on his parallel agendas of steering the country toward the West while pursuing peace with Azerbaijan and normalization with Turkey. Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Öncü Keçeli announced on X on May 13 that bureaucratic preparations for the launch of direct trade between Turkey and Armenia had been completed as of May 11.
Turkey shows signs of renewing its ties with its NATO alliance partners amid the ongoing Iran crisis. The renewal of vows follows a tempestuous period in its relations not only with the U.S. but also with NATO following the acquisition of the S-400 air defense system from Russia. Particularly over the past 20 years, facing U.S. CAATSA sanctions and Europe’s covert arms embargoes in the fight against the PKK, Turkey’s government and opposition have both questioned the value of NATO membership.