Halkbank

Biden Administration Foreign Policy Tracker: Early May

Commerce Department Targets Former Turkish Banker for Evading Iran Sanctions

The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security on May 5 announced it would deny export privileges to Mehmet Hakan Atilla, the former deputy general manager of Halkbank, Turkey’s second-largest...

Biden Administration Foreign Policy Tracker: Late April

Late April Trends

Halkbank’s Last-Minute Effort to Scuttle Iran Sanctions-Evasion Case

Halkbank, a public lender majority-owned by Turkey’s sovereign wealth fund, claimed on April 12 before a U.S. court that the bank is immune from charges U.S. prosecutors brought in October 2019, which...

Manhattan Court Gave Erdogan’s Pet Bank a Get-out-of-Jail-Free Card

Turkey’s currency is in free fall. International investors are fleeing the country. Accusations of bribery and support for terrorism abound. And something clearly is rotten at the heart of the Turkish...

Turkey’s Ziraat Bank Under Scrutiny

Irregularities Point to Erdoğan’s Manipulation of Financial System to Consolidate Power

Turkey

Turkey’s Frantic Gold Rush Points to a Financial Crisis Ahead

As ordinary citizens seek to preserve their wealth, President Recep Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party is finding new ways to take advantage of the gold rush.

Getting Erdogan’s Turkey Right: Reflections on Ambassador Jeffrey’s Exit Interview

In a recent exit interview with Defense One, Ambassador James F. Jeffrey, the outgoing special representative for Syria engagement, asserted that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey poses challenges...

Biden and Erdogan: Five Potential Flashpoints in US-Turkish Relations

After being protected by Donald Trump, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan could soon face US sanctions and political pushback from Joe Biden’s administration that would sour Ankara-Washington relations.

Turkish bank rulings should be a wakeup call for global financial institutions

Turkish banks are taking a beating in American courts. First, a federal judge in the Southern District of New York (SDNY) refused to dismiss an indictment accusing Halkbank, majority-owned by the Turkish...

Turkish Public Lender Fails Again to Scuttle Iran Sanctions Evasion Case

A Manhattan federal judge on October 1 refused to dismiss an indictment accusing Halkbank, a public lender majority-owned by the Turkish government, of helping Iran evade U.S. sanctions. In the event of...

Iran’s Turkey-Based Sanctions-Evasion Scheme More Extensive Than Previously Reported

Iran’s sanctions-evasion schemes involving Turkey “started earlier, lasted longer, extended further, and involved more people and countries” than previously known, according to a series of deeply...

Trump Should Teach Erdogan a Lesson in Law, Not Corruption

The president offered to help Turkey’s strongman beat U.S. courts, John Bolton has revealed. It only helps Iran.

Erdogan’s Fourth Attempt to Take Over Turkey’s Largest Private Bank

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on May 12 asked the central executive committee of his Justice and Development Party to speed up plans for the government to take over a 28 percent stake in Isbank,...

Halkbank pleads not guilty in a landmark sanctions-evasion case

Should the United States Lift Sanctions on Iran to Address Its Coronavirus Outbreak?

Iran is the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in the Middle East. The Islamic Republic’s leadership has engaged in a massive campaign aimed at lifting sanctions imposed on it for its malign activities,...

Turkish Public Lender Pleads Not Guilty for Evading Iran Sanctions

Halkbank, a public lender majority-owned by the Turkish government, pleaded not guilty at a Manhattan court on March 31 to criminal charges that it helped Iran illicitly transfer tens of billions of dollars...

Turkey’s leak of Istanbul killing shows unlikely marriage with Iran under strain

Senior Turkish officials last week implicated two Iranian diplomats for instigating the November 2019 assassination of Iranian dissident Masoud Molavi Vardanjani in Istanbul. Until recently, Turkish and...

The Coronavirus Is Absolutely No Excuse To Lift Sanctions on Iran

Exploiting Iran's coronavirus crisis to demand an end to sanctions is fundamentally dishonest—and panders to a brutal regime.