Aykan Erdemir

Hamas and Turkey: Partners in Terror

Turkey To Halt Military Operation in Northern Iraq

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on July 13 that Turkey is winding down its military operation against Kurdish separatists in northern Iraq. In 2022, Turkey launched...

Erdogan Pushes for Another Hamas Flotilla

Turkey’s Ministry of Defense announced on October 12 that it plans to ship humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. While Ankara did not specify how the aid will be delivered, the move...

The United States and Saudi Arabia: A Possible Path Forward

Supreme Court Allows Iran Sanctions-Evasion Case Against Turkish Bank to Proceed

The Supreme Court ruled on April 19 that the Turkish state-owned Halkbank remains subject to criminal prosecution in U.S. courts for conspiring to evade U.S. sanctions against Iran....

Turkey After Erdogan

US Sanctions Friend of Turkish President for Helping Iran Evade Sanctions

The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned on December 8 Sitki Ayan– a Turkish businessman and friend of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan – accusing him and his companies of circumventing sanctions on Iran’s energy industry. According to Treasury, Ayan facilitated the sale of millions of dollars’ worth of oil for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force (IRGC-QF).

Turkey Seeks Sovereign Immunity in Two Cases Before the Supreme Court

Two recent Supreme Court rulings in the United States may shed light on whether entities owned by foreign governments can claim immunity under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA)...

Biden Administration Foreign Policy Tracker: April

Ukraine War Offers Opportunity To Bring Turkey and its Defense Industry into NATO Fold

Turkish weaponry is helping Ukrainian troops fight off Russia’s invasion of their homeland. TB-2 drones are confirmed to have struck Russian targets. Yet Turkey’s Deputy Foreign Minister Yavuz Selim...

Meet the Turkish Oligarch Who’s Pushing Kremlin Talking Points

Ethem Sancak helps Erdogan straddle the NATO and Russia positions in the Ukraine war.

Engines of Influence

Turkey’s Defense Industry Under Erdogan

Turkey Walks a Tightrope on Ukraine

It closed the Turkish Straits to most Russian ships—but also most NATO ships.

Erdogan’s Balancing Act Between Russia and Ukraine

Turkey’s strongman leader has expressed support for the besieged country. He has also joined Putin’s assault on the Western media.

Biden Administration Foreign Policy Tracker: March

Erdogan Moves to Censor Western Media But not Russian Propaganda

Turkey’s media regulator, RTUK, posted three official notifications on February 21 threatening to block Western broadcasters Deutsche Welle (DW), Euronews, and Voice of America (VOA), unless they obtain...

Turkey Could Become the Middle East’s Next Narco-State

If Turkey joins Syria and Lebanon as the third narco-state in the Eastern Mediterranean, this will only compound the region’s trafficking and money laundering problems, while also presenting illicit non-state actors greater opportunities to exploit.

Iran’s Cyber Operations Against Turkey Should Be a Wakeup Call for Erdogan

As Turkey’s Islamist President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signals his intention to mend ties with Israel, Iranian state-sponsored hackers have been targeting government and private-sector entities across Turkey,...

Embattled Erdogan Signals Turkish-Israeli Thaw

The ground in the Middle East is shifting yet again.

Turkey a Step Closer to Suspension From the Council of Europe

The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted an interim resolution on Wednesday officially launching infringement proceedings against Turkey for Ankara’s refusal to release Turkish philanthropist...