No “Strategic Convergence” in the Greece–Turkey Dialogue — and Why It Matters in Washington ANKARA/ATHENS — A new essay from the Middle East Forum argues that the latest Greece–Turkey “dialogue” is masking a hard reality: the two NATO allies may be talking more, but they are not moving closer on the core questions that actually […]
Erdoğan Installs New Leadership at Turkey’s Central Bank — A Strategic Pivot With Global Ambitions ANKARA — In a move that underscores both continuity and change at the heart of Türkiye’s economic management, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has appointed two new deputy governors to the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye (TCMB), signaling a
The End of the Friction? Washington’s Syria Pivot and Billion‑Dollar Energy Deals Transforming Ties with Türkiye n recent weeks, Washington and Ankara have begun to sound—at least briefly—like two capitals rediscovering the advantages of cooperation. The shift is not being driven by a single summit or one dramatic announcement, but by two parallel tracks that
Türkiye’s Twin Deals With Exxon and Chevron: Energy Diplomacy as a New Bridge to Washington Washington When Turkey’s Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar announced that Ankara expects to sign an upstream exploration agreement with Chevron next month, it sounded at first like a standard line item in an industry bulletin: another exploration deal in a crowded
Washington’s New Gaza Experiment Puts Türkiye and Qatar in the Room — and Ignites a Fight Over Who Should Hold the Levers n the Trump administration’s emerging architecture for postwar Gaza, the most combustible question is not only how to rebuild shattered streets or restore basic services. It is who gets to help run the
World Leaders Consider Trump’s “Board of Peace,” as Western Allies Hold Back — and Türkiye Signs On The newest diplomatic club in President Trump’s Washington is not built around treaties, parliaments, or the United Nations. It is built around a document, a fee schedule, and a seat at a table chaired — by design —
As Syria’s Kurdish Force Recedes, a Long-Running U.S.-Turkiye Dispute Begins to Fade — and a New One Takes Shape For nearly a decade, one issue has routinely jammed the gears of the U.S.-Turkey alliance: America’s partnership in Syria with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, or SDF — a group Ankara views as inseparable from the
Turkey’s TPAO Courts Chevron, Signaling an Energy Pivot With Political Ripples in Washington When Turkey’s state energy company quietly began talks with Chevron about joint oil and gas exploration, it was easy to read the headlines as just another hydrocarbons story. For policymakers in Washington — and for Turkish Americans watching U.S.–Turkey ties whiplash between
Trump Calls Erdoğan Conversation “Very Good,” Offering Few Details — but Sending a Familiar Signal President Trump said he had a “very good call” with Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, offering little public detail about the substance of the conversation even as the timing underscored how central Turkey remains to several of Washington’s most delicate
U.S. Officials Brace for a Wider Syria-Kurd Clash — With Turkey’s Shadow Over the Battlefield In the brittle, post–civil war landscape of Syria, a familiar triangle is tightening again: Washington, Ankara, and the Kurdish-led forces that have been America’s most effective local partner against ISIS. U.S. officials are increasingly concerned that Syrian military pressure on
