Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan paid an official visit to Pakistan on October 25-26 in a bid to boost bilateral relations. He was accompanied by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, and other ministers. Erdogan met with his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani. They signed a... MORE

Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbayev paid an official visit to Turkey on October 21-24, as the guest of his Turkish counterpart, Abdullah Gul. In addition to his meeting with Gul, Nazarbayev was hosted by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, addressed the Turkish parliament, and met with... MORE

On October 19, Turkey, Italy and Russia signed a memorandum of understanding on the Samsun-Ceyhan oil pipeline (SCP). Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz, the Italian Economic Development Minister Claudio Scajola and the Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin, inked the agreement that regulates the commitments... MORE

The European Commission has released its “2009 Progress Report” and “Enlargement Strategy Paper” in which it assessed developments in Turkey. The strategy paper stressed Ankara’s role in contributing to the stability of the Middle East and the South Caucasus. Turkey’s efforts toward the normalization of... MORE

The strains in Turkish-Azeri relations caused by Turkey's energy policies and its attemps to resolve its diplomatic problems with Armenia are beginning to dominate the agenda in Ankara’s relations with Baku.On October 15, in a district of Baku, Turkish flags decorating monuments commemorating the Turkish... MORE

President Ilham Aliyev broke two years of silence regarding Turkey’s obstruction of Azerbaijani gas exports westward, while chairing an expanded session of Azerbaijan’s government on October 16 (www.day.az, October 17). Ankara’s stonewalling can cause further delays to the European Union’s Nabucco and Southern Corridor projects,... MORE

Since the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government first revealed its Kurdish initiative in cooperation with the other state institutions, including the military and the National Intelligence Service (MIT), many doubted whether it would prove successful. While the opposition parties were arguing against the Kurdish... MORE

The strains in Turkish-Israeli relations have increased over the past week, raising questions about the durability of the strategic relationship between the two countries.Earlier last week, Ankara’s decision to cancel the international dimension of the multinational Anatolian Eagle air defense exercise dealt a serious blow... MORE

Turkish-Israeli relations face a new test over Ankara's decision to change the format of a joint international military exercise to a national exercise. Following some Israeli officials' charges that the move was based on political motivations, the Turkish side called on Tel Aviv to behave... MORE