Politicians have a tendency to make populist promises on the campaign trail. Appealing to the emotions of voters is largely considered an effective way of receiving popular support. A number of issues, ranging from the economy to foreign policy, often…
The June 24, 2018 elections will mark a turning point for political parties and politicians in Turkey. A large number of individuals, products of the parliamentary system themselves, will be forced to leave the political arena for good on election…
Last week, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held a comical meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the Oval Office. Pledging to reform his country by promoting “moderate Islam,” the 32-year-old man went onto an “incredible” public diplomacy offensive…
U.S. President Donald Trump made headlines this week by dismissing and appointing senior members of his administration. In recent days, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was sacked to be replaced by CIA Director Mike Pompeo. Meanwhile, Trump picked Gina Haspel,…
The storm of polarization in the Middle East looks far from an end. At this point, the various players are not even trying to hide their true intentions, which used to be kept to themselves or in private circles. At…
Turkey and the United States are finally talking about normalization. If everything goes as planned, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s most recent meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will mark a critical turning point in bilateral relations. More specifically,…
Nowadays, there is heavy diplomatic traffic between Turkey and the United States. Following U.S. National Security Adviser Gen. H.R. McMaster’s visit to Istanbul over the weekend, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is expected to be in the Turkish capital…
If anybody thought that Daesh’s defeat would lead to de-escalation in Syria, they must be seriously disappointed. Neither the armed clashes on the ground nor the negotiations are likely to end anytime soon. The large chunk of territory under the…
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan traveled to Rome earlier this week to meet with Pope Francis in the Vatican. In addition to holding a series of meetings at the Holy See, he discussed the future of bilateral relations with Italian President…
As Operation Olive Branch continues with full force, there are efforts to bring Turkey’s fight against the PKK-affiliate People’s Protection Units (YPG) to an end. Western governments note that they appreciate Ankara’s security concerns. Yet they clearly don’t want the…