Latest Articles about Turkey

PROTESTS CONTINUE IN KURDISH CITIES IN TURKEY

On October 17 lawyers for imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan claimed that prison personnel had physically attacked Ocalan and threatened him by saying that when the time came he would be killed (Firat News Agency, October 17). Immediately after the statement was released, the Kurdistan... MORE

TURKEY COURTS CENTRAL ASIA

In the aftermath of the Georgian-Russian confrontation, Ankara sees an opportunity to expand its trade relations with Central Asia, particularly the rising petro-states of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan. Seeking to capitalize on the changing geostrategic environment for Caspian energy exports, Turkish Parliamentary Speaker Koksal Toptan, accompanied... MORE

POLLS SUGGEST WAVERING POPULAR SUPPORT FOR THE AKP

Recent opinion polls suggest that a string of corruption scandals and the slowdown in the pace of economic growth in Turkey are eroding popular support for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). An opinion poll conducted from October 8 to 12 by the Metropoll... MORE

TURKEY’S OVERHAULS ITS COUNTER-TERRORISM POLICY

On October 14 the Turkish authorities announced that the Turkish Interior Ministry would be restructured to improve coordination of Turkey’s counter-terrorism efforts (Radikal, Milliyet, Vatan, NTV, October 15). The announcement was contained in a statement released after a meeting earlier in the day of the... MORE

TURKEY COMPLETES A MAJOR STEP IN THE MARMARAY PROJECT

Turkish engineers swelled with pride when the first Bogazici Koprusu (Bosporus Bridge) opened in 1973, spanning Istanbul's historic channel between Asia and Europe. When opened, it was the longest suspension bridge outside the U.S. It was followed 15 years later by the Fatih Sultan Mehmet... MORE

TURKEY BITES THE BULLET

On October 10 the Turkish government announced that it was preparing to initiate a long-term dialogue with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in an attempt to increase pressure on the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), whose main camps and bases are located in the mountains of... MORE

TURKEY PRESSING AHEAD WITH SECOND NUCLEAR TENDER

On October 9 Turkish Energy Minister Hilmi Guler predicted that the evaluation of the winning bid in Turkey’s first nuclear power plant tender at Akkuyu on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast would be completed by the end of October. He added that the government was currently working... MORE