The Turkey-Hamas Nexus
How a NATO member became Hamas's biggest backer.
Ahmet Davutoğlu
Hamas’s BFFs
The next time there is an effort to broker a cease-fire between Hamas and Israel -- and there will be a next time -- Qatar and Turkey should be sitting at the table beside Hamas, not among the re...
Op-eds
Why Qatar and Turkey Can’t Solve the Crisis in Gaza
With Washington desperate for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, an...
Op-eds
ISIS and the Threat to Turkey
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) seized the Turkish consulate in Mosul, Iraq last week, abducting ...
Op-eds
Rouhani In Ankara: The Latest Sign Of Warming Iran-Turkey Ties
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani arrived in Ankara today with a large delegation for his first state-level trip to Turkey. He met with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and President Abdullah G...
Policy Briefs
Turkey’s ISIS problem
On March 27 an audio tape recording of high-level Turkish officials discussing Turkey's Syria strategy was leaked on YouTube. The meeting was held between Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, F...
Op-eds
Erdoğan’s Trip to Tehran
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will make a two-day official visit to Tehran on January 28 to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. Erdoğan is expected to sign a strategic coo...
Policy Briefs
Turkish Intelligence Agency (MIT) at Center of Political Storm
On Jan 1, news broke that a big rig was stopped i...
Op-eds
Turkey, Iran Grow Closer as Erdogan Plans Visit to Islamic Republic
Turkey and Iran seem to be boosting relations as the two countries continue to exchange high-level visits. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is planning to visit Iran at...
Op-eds
Erdogan’s Great Gamble
Something quite extraordinary -- perhaps even historic -- is afoot in Turkey. The country's prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is engaged in a colossal roll of the political dice, an act...
Op-eds
Return to Realism
Last Friday, Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, made a call to his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, resolving the dispute between the two countries following the 2010 Ma...
Op-eds
John Kerry Roasts Turkey
On his first trip abroad, the new secretary of state criticized Erdogan’s comments about Israel. It’s about time.
Op-eds
Hamas Won?
A week after the ceasefire concluding Israel’s eight day campaign against Hamas, Operation Pillar of Defense, there is some debate as to who came out on top. The way one judges the outcome...
Op-eds
Sitting Out the Syria Game
In the run-up to the US presidential election, Washington’s regional allies were...
Op-eds
A Foreign Policy Without Principle or Prudence
After almost a week of exchanging fire with Syrian troops across its southern border, Turkey finds itself embroiled on another, albeit related, international front. Wednesday the Turkish air forc...
Op-eds
The Kurdish Factor
How an ethnic minority shaped the Middle East.
Op-eds
Some Questionable State Department Actions
Prepared by staff at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies 1) Global Counterterrorism Conference Without Israel The Global Counterterrorism Forum w...
Op-eds
US Policy on Syria: A Bad Joke Told at the Syrian People’s Expense
First Obama outsourced to Turkey the job of overseeing the formation of the opposition. The result was the Syrian National Council, which is controlled by the Muslim Brotherhood, as the Muslim Br...
Op-eds
U.S. to Turkey: We Won’t Take Action on Syria
Clinton rejected proposals offered by Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu during a meeting last month, Turkish and U.S. sources...
Op-eds
Syria Ruffles Turkey’s Feathers
The attack by Syrian regime thugs on Turkish missions in Syria last Saturday has spurred a strong rebuke and warnings from Ankara. However, while this may have been the most open Syrian attack ag...