Politics
Türkiye pledges strong support for reforms to strengthen D-8
Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz said Tuesday that Türkiye will continue to offer “sincere and strong support” for the reform process aimed at boosting the international effectiveness of the Developing Eight (D-8), an organization Ankara helped establish.
Yılmaz met with D-8 Secretary-General Sohail Mahmood at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, where the two discussed ongoing efforts to strengthen the bloc. In a statement shared on his social media account, Yılmaz said the meeting focused on making the D-8 more dynamic, project-oriented, and results-driven.
He noted that the accession of Azerbaijan has created new momentum within the organization, adding that the sides reviewed how to make the most of this development. Discussions also covered reforms aimed at reinforcing the Secretariat institutionally and financially to ensure more effective coordination among member states.
“As Türkiye, we will continue to sincerely and strongly support this transformation process that will enhance the global effectiveness of the D-8, in whose founding we played a leading role,” Yılmaz said.
He thanked Secretary-General Mahmood for his visit and extended his best wishes ahead of the upcoming D-8 Summit, scheduled to be held in Jakarta on April 14–15, 2026, expressing hope that the gathering would yield positive outcomes for the organization and all its member states.
The Turkish Parliament on Wednesday hosted a commemoration marking the 34th anniversary of the killings in Khojaly, with officials calling for remembrance and warning against future atrocities.
The event, titled the “Khojaly Genocide Commemoration Program,” was organized at the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) by the Türkiye-Azerbaijan Friendship, Cooperation and Solidarity Foundation (TADIV) and the Azerbaijani Embassy in Ankara. A photo exhibition accompanied the ceremony.
Among those attending were TADIV board chair Aygün Attar, Türkiye’s Chief Ombudsman Mehmet Akarca, head of the Türkiye-Azerbaijan parliamentary friendship group Şamil Ayrım, Republican People’s Party (CHP) lawmaker Gökhan Günaydın and Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Ankara, Rashad Mammadov.
Attar, who also chairs the Presidential Security and Foreign Policies Board, said the 1992 events in Khojaly continue to shape collective memory despite the territory’s return to Azerbaijani control following the recent Karabakh war. She said the commemoration seeks to prevent “new Khojaly, Srebrenica or Gaza” tragedies and urged the international community to reject violence based on ethnic or religious identity.
Mammadov said dozens were killed in Khojaly “for being Turkish and Muslim” and noted that despite hopes after World War II that such crimes would not recur, later atrocities in Rwanda, Cambodia and Srebrenica took place.
Referring to Azerbaijan’s military gains under President Ilham Aliyev, Mammadov said the country faces the challenge of sustaining peace in the South Caucasus while ensuring similar tragedies do not happen again. He added that pursuing peace is difficult for a nation that endured such suffering but described it as a necessity to prevent further bloodshed.
Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides on Tuesday said he held an “open and honest” meeting with Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhürman as both sides discussed confidence-building steps and efforts to restart stalled Cyprus negotiations.
The meeting, which lasted about 90 minutes, took place at the residence of the head of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), Khassim Diagne.
Speaking to reporters afterward, Christodoulides said the leaders reviewed progress on confidence-building measures and agreed to provide guiding principles to their negotiators to help advance the process.
“We had an open and honest meeting,” he said, adding that broader substantive issues were also discussed.
Christodoulides said the two sides agreed to meet again soon to assess developments and determine whether further progress could be made toward resuming formal negotiations on the island’s future.
According to the Greek Cypriot leader, the talks included a detailed review of all confidence-building measures, including both areas of progress and points where delays have occurred. Issues related to crossing points between the two sides were also on the agenda.
He said the purpose of the contacts was to create momentum toward restarting comprehensive negotiations while preserving the framework established in previous United Nations efforts.
Christodoulides also said he has requested a meeting with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in March and plans to convene the Greek Cypriot National Council to brief political leaders and gather their views.
Christodoulides also noted that the principle of political equality between the two communities had been reaffirmed in line with recent U.N. discussions, as both sides explore ways to rebuild trust and move the long-stalled peace process forward.
The meeting comes amid renewed diplomatic efforts to revive talks on the divided island. Cyprus has been mired in a decades-long dispute between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the U.N. to achieve a comprehensive settlement.
The Greek Cypriot side is recognized as a political entity by most of the international community, while the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) pushes for recognition, with the support of Türkiye.
The head of Türkiye’s parliamentary foreign affairs commission said Tuesday that growing energy trade between Armenia and Azerbaijan is paving the way for broader regional normalization, including improved ties between Ankara and Yerevan.
Fuat Oktay, chair of Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Commission, made the remarks during an official visit to Baku, where he attended a trilateral meeting of the foreign affairs commissions of Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Georgia.
Speaking to reporters, Oktay described Azerbaijan as a friendly country and a second homeland, and said the South Caucasus is undergoing rapid political and economic transformation. He pointed to the initialing of agreements related to the Zangezur corridor and what he referred to as the “Trump Corridor,” as well as steps toward normalization between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
“Oil trade is taking place directly between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” Oktay said. “This inevitably brings with it the start of a normalization process between Türkiye and Armenia.”
He reiterated that Ankara’s position has been that normalization with Armenia would move forward in parallel with a peace agreement and improved relations between Yerevan and Baku.
Türkiye and Armenia have already taken limited steps, including facilitating travel for holders of diplomatic passports and launching direct flights operated by Turkish Airlines (THY).
Oktay said Georgia plays a key role in regional connectivity, highlighting the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway and overland transport routes linking Türkiye, Azerbaijan and the broader Turkic world. He expressed hope that expanded transport corridors would contribute to peace, prosperity and development across the region.
He added that reduced tensions could positively affect neighboring countries, including Iran and Russia, amid ongoing uncertainty fueled by the Russia-Ukraine war and U.S.-Iran tensions.
Oktay also noted that Türkiye aims to use parliamentary diplomacy alongside executive-level contacts to help lower regional tensions and support stability in the South Caucasus.
On Aug. 8, 2025, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met in Washington under U.S. mediation and signed a joint declaration reaffirming their commitment to ending decades of conflict. On the same occasion, the foreign ministers of both countries initialed a peace agreement, underscoring a shared determination to advance toward full normalization.
Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry on Monday issued a joint statement with 20 countries and two regional organizations, warning that Israel’s latest decisions in the occupied West Bank further erode Palestinian rights and tighten Tel Aviv’s unlawful control over land internationally recognized as Palestinian territory.
The foreign ministers – representing Türkiye, Brazil, Denmark, Egypt, France, Finland, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Jordan, Luxembourg, Norway, Palestine, Portugal, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden – said Israel’s reclassification of large areas as “state land” and its further expansion of illegal settlements reflect a pattern of decisions that undermine international law and worsen conditions on the ground.
The statement, also backed by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the League of Arab States, said the moves advance “unacceptable de facto annexation,” complicating diplomatic efforts and eroding the viability of a future Palestinian state.
Ministers highlighted the approval and tendering of the E1 project as a particularly destabilizing step, arguing that it fragments Palestinian territory and further limits the prospects for a negotiated solution. They warned that ongoing policies risk locking in permanent changes to the legal and administrative status of the territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem.
Citing mounting settler violence, the signatories urged Israel to halt attacks on Palestinians and ensure accountability, saying the escalation jeopardizes security and stability across the West Bank.
The ministers also called on Israel to immediately release tax revenues owed to the Palestinian Authority under the Paris Protocol, noting that the withheld funds have severely strained essential services in both Gaza and the West Bank.
With Ramadan underway, the statement underscored the need to preserve the historical and legal status quo at Jerusalem’s holy sites and recognized the role of Hashemite custodianship. They warned that repeated violations risk igniting wider tensions.
The joint declaration reaffirmed support for a two-state solution based on the 1967 lines, saying only a sovereign and independent Palestinian state can deliver lasting peace and regional integration.
Turkish security forces have detained a suspect accused of serving as a senior operative within the naval network of the Gülenist Terrorist Group (FETÖ), authorities said Tuesday.
Bedrettin Günebakmaz, who was wanted on charges of membership in an armed terrorist organization, was arrested in an operation in Istanbul’s Üsküdar district carried out by counterterrorism police in coordination with the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and intelligence units, according to officials.
The Interior Ministry had listed Günebakmaz in the “yellow category” of its most-wanted terrorism suspects. Authorities allege he held a managerial role in the organization’s covert structure within the Naval Forces Command.
Investigators said technical and physical surveillance indicated that the suspect used the encrypted messaging application ByLock, had links to the now-defunct Bank Asya, and was connected to the group’s overseas network. Statements in the investigation file also identified him as a chemistry teacher who had contacts with military personnel in the northwestern city of Sakarya.
Police said the suspect had taken extensive measures to conceal his identity, including renting property under a false name, registering utilities in the names of others and keeping multiple hats, caps and glasses to avoid recognition by security cameras.
The suspect was taken into custody and transferred to police headquarters for further processing.
The terrorist group orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, in Türkiye, in which 252 people were killed and 2,734 were wounded. Ankara also accuses FETÖ of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.
Türkiye has targeted its active members and sleeper cells nonstop, and its influence has been much reduced since 2016. However, the group maintains a vast network, including infiltrators suspected to be still operating within Turkish institutions.
FETÖ backers in army ranks and civil institutions have disguised their loyalty, as operations and investigations have indicated since the 2016 coup attempt. FETÖ is also implicated in a string of cases related to its alleged plots to imprison its critics, money laundering, fraud and forgery.
The terrorist group faces operations almost daily as investigators still try to unravel their massive network of infiltrators everywhere.
Internal tensions within Türkiye’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) escalated after a group of dissident figures held a closed-door meeting in Ankara, sharply criticizing the party leadership and signaling plans to expand their efforts.
According to a report in Turkish newspaper Sabah, citing party sources, 42 CHP members, including 13 sitting lawmakers and 13 former members of Parliament, gathered Sunday at a private location for a six-hour meeting that focused on the party’s direction and internal management. The meeting was attended by senior figures, including Istanbul Provincial Chair Gürsel Tekin.
Participants delivered strong criticism of the party headquarters, focusing on what sources described as three main areas of concern.
First, attendees voiced objections to what they see as the leadership’s blanket defense of individuals implicated in corruption investigations, calling instead for a process of “purification” within the party.
Second, the group expressed discomfort over what they described as the continued marginalization and exclusion of dissenting voices since 2023.
Third, participants criticized what they characterized as policies detached from the party’s institutional traditions and the country’s national agenda, along with what sources described as harsh or inappropriate messaging from party leader Özgür Özel.
Sources familiar with the meeting said the gathering was organized at the invitation of former Istanbul lawmaker Ali Özcan and was conducted independently of former party leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. However, they said Kılıçdaroğlu would be given a detailed briefing on the discussions and conclusions.
The dissident bloc is expected to expand its activities. According to participants, more than 20 additional CHP lawmakers may attend the next meeting, on top of the 13 current MPs who were present on Sunday. Sources added that seven lawmakers had planned to attend but were unable to do so due to last-minute personal reasons.
The time and location of the next gathering have not yet been determined, but organizers indicated that such meetings would continue regularly.
The internal maneuvering comes ahead of a major party event scheduled for March 2 at CHP headquarters under the theme “Together with the Nation, at the Service of the Nation.” The program is expected to feature policy announcements and the introduction of a 350-person team presented as candidates to govern the country.
Party officials from across Türkiye, including provincial leaders and lawmakers, have been invited to attend. According to sources, Özel is expected to deliver an extended speech at the event in a format resembling that of a presidential candidate. A large group photo centered around the party leader is also planned.
Imamoğlu factor
The gathering also comes against the backdrop of continued political activity by Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu, who, according to sources within the party, maintains communication with members of a “shadow cabinet” structure through his legal representatives.
Members of the dissident camp argue that the leadership’s current strategy is to continue presenting Imamoğlu as a potential candidate and maintain a narrative of political pressure around him. They claim that once it becomes clear he cannot run, the party leadership may promote the idea that the party chair should become the natural presidential candidate.
The developments highlight growing factionalism within the CHP as it navigates internal power struggles and prepares for upcoming electoral challenges.
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