Latest Articles about Turkey
TURKEY THROWS ITS WEIGHT BEHIND NABUCCO
The European Union has intensified its efforts to turn the Nabucco pipeline project into a reality, now that Turkey has pledged to throw its weight behind the project. Due to its geographical proximity to the suppliers, Turkey is a linchpin in the network, which is... MORE
TURKISH MILITARY SET TO WARN AKP OVER HEADSCARF
The Turkish military is expected to use the opportunity provided by the National Security Council (NSC) meeting on Thursday, February 21, to issue a strongly worded warning to the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government over its attempts to lift the headscarf ban in universities... MORE
POLICY AND PERSONALITY: A RIFT OPENS IN TURCO-GERMAN TIES
The recent angry exchanges between the Turkish and German governments over the integration of Turks living in Germany have highlighted the increasing vulnerability of Turkish policy to the personality of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. On February 10, Erdogan told an audience of around 18,000... MORE
ANKARA REASSURES NEIGHBORS ON WATER SHARING
While Turkey may become a foreign oil resource sometime in the future, decades of investment in hydroelectric power are now paying off, and the country is in the extraordinary position of being able to export one of the Middle East’s most precious resources – water.... MORE
ISRAEL’S BARAK IN ANKARA TO TRY TO BOOST DEFENSE TIES
On February 12, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak arrived in Ankara for a two-day visit to try to boost defense ties between the two countries, with the proposed sale of the Ofek (“Horizon”) spy satellite topping the agenda. Defense industry ties between Turkey and Israel... MORE
KURDISH PARTY PRESENTS DEFENSE, WARNS OF CIVIL WAR
On February 11, the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DPT) presented its initial defense in the case brought before the Turkish Constitutional Court calling for its closure. In its concluding arguments, the DPT warned that, by regarding the Kurdish issue as one of terrorism and using... MORE
TURKEY’S CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGES: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING?
On February 9, Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), supported by the opposition ultranationalist Nationalist Action Party (MHP), amended the Turkish constitution in an attempt to create the legal framework for lifting the ban that currently prevents women wearing headscarves from attending university. The... MORE
POLL SUGGESTS MILITARY STILL THE MOST TRUSTED INSTITUTION IN TURKEY
Despite its failed attempt last year to prevent Abdullah Gul from being appointed president, the Turkish military remains the most trusted institution in the country, according to the latest Eurobarometer opinion poll conducted for the European Commission. On April 27, 2007, the Turkish General Staff... MORE
THE TURKISH MILITARY AND THE MHP: THE END OF A PLATONIC LOVE AFFAIR?
An angry confrontation outside the headquarters of the ultranationalist Nationalist Action Party (MHP) appears to have signaled the end of one of the longest platonic love affairs in Turkish politics. On February 5 the representatives of a number of associations representing retired military personnel attempted... MORE
TURKEY PLANS TO COMBAT ARMENIAN GENOCIDE ISSUE AT THE HAGUE
The tragic events in eastern Anatolia in 1915 continue to roil not only Turkish-Armenian relations, but the international community and Turkish-American relations as well. For more than 25 years, Yerevan and the Armenian diaspora have lobbied to have the events in the wartime Ottoman Empire... MORE