Politics
Türkiye, Armenia sign bridge deal as VP makes historic visit
Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz was in Yerevan on Monday to attend a European Political Community summit in the Armenian capital. His visit comes at a time of gradual normalization of ties between the two countries, which is also linked to a peace process between Armenia and Türkiye’s main ally, Azerbaijan. During the visit, Turkish and Armenian officials signed an agreement for the joint restoration of the Ani Bridge. The bridge, dated to the 10th century, is also known as the Silk Road Bridge and is located on the Arpaçay River in the eastern Turkish province of Kars, near the Turkish-Armenian border and near the eponymous archaeological site. It is regarded as the ancient Silk Road’s “gateway” to Anatolia.
The two countries reached an understanding in September 2025 for the restoration of the bridge and Monday’s signing sealed the deal. Ambassador Serdar Kılıç, special envoy of Türkiye for normalization with Armenia, and Armenia’s Ruben Rubinyan, signed the deal.
Yılmaz is the highest-ranking official since former President Abdullah Gül to visit Armenia. His visit is more significant though, as Yerevan and Ankara explore more ways to further cooperation and eventually, fully normalize their relations.
The vice president was welcomed by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and joined heads of state and government for a family photo at the summit. More than 40 leaders are attending the summit, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron, U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. On the sidelines of the meeting, Yılmaz met with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store to discuss bilateral ties and areas of cooperation.
Yılmaz’s participation was singled out by Pashinyan as he hailed the visit during a speech at the summit while EU Council President Antonio Costa emphasized that the South Caucasus has entered a “transformative phase” following the normalization of relations between Armenia and Türkiye, alongside a peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan Speaking at the summit, Costa highlighted growing momentum toward regional stability and cooperation. He said improved ties between Ankara and Yerevan, coupled with the Armenia-Azerbaijan agreement, are laying the foundation for a more integrated and connected region. “That agreement is a story of peace in Europe that must be celebrated, in a world where escalation and war seem to dominate. Thanks to this agreement and improved relations between Turkey and Armenia, the region has embarked on a transformative path,” he said, pointing to efforts to develop strategic industries, markets, transport corridors, digital networks and energy interconnections. According to Costa, these initiatives go beyond facilitating trade and movement, instead helping build trust among neighbors, create jobs and foster shared economic growth.
Since 2020, Türkiye and Armenia have held a string of talks at various levels to explore the way forward in relations. Most recently, delegations from the two sides met in Kars of eastern Türkiye to discuss the revival of a railway between the two neighbors. Earlier, direct passenger and cargo flights were launched mutually. Ankara and Yerevan also approved the opening of the Alican border crossing to citizens of third countries and diplomatic passport holders. Before Yılmaz’s visit, Pashinyan met President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan last June in Istanbul.
Azerbaijan-Armenia peace
The peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia is also crucial for progress in Turkish-Armenian normalization. Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev was also present at the summit, although via videolink. He used the opportunity to criticize the European Parliament for “sabotaging” the peace process. Aliyev said the European Parliament had adopted 14 resolutions over the past five years containing offensive language directed at Baku. “This body, instead of supporting the peace process, is effectively engaged in sabotaging it. From May 2021 to April 30, 2026, the European Parliament has adopted 14 resolutions full of offensive wording against Azerbaijan. Just imagine – 14 resolutions in five years, a kind of obsession. And the latest one was adopted just four days ago,” Aliyev stated.
Aliyev said the Azerbaijani Parliament decided on May 1 to suspend cooperation with the European Parliament in all spheres and initiate procedures to terminate its membership in the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly. On May 1, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry summoned EU Ambassador to Baku Mariana Kuyuncic who was handed a protest note regarding the European Parliament resolution Supporting Democratic Resilience in Armenia. The ministry emphasized that the provisions of the resolution distort reality, contradict the principles of objectivity, as well as, the obligations to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states. According to Aliyev, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said the resolution distorted reality, contradicted the principles of objectivity and violated obligations to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, for his part, expressed hope that he would visit Azerbaijan in 2028 to participate in the next EPC summit.
“I hope that I will have the opportunity to visit Azerbaijan in 2028 for the EPC summit,” Pashinyan said during the gathering in Yerevan.
Pashinyan noted that Armenia and Azerbaijan had mutually supported each other’s candidacies to host future EPC summits.
Commenting on Aliyev’s remarks, he emphasized that it was the first time an Azerbaijani president had participated in an event held in Armenia, even if through videoconference.
He added that EPC summits have played an important role in facilitating contacts between the leaderships of Armenia and Türkiye.
“My first bilateral meeting with the Turkish president took place precisely on the sidelines of the first EPC summit in Prague. And now the Vice President of Türkiye is here to participate in the EPC summit and has become the first Turkish vice president to visit Armenia,” Pashinyan said.
Opposition lawmaker Özgür Özel on Tuesday delivered what he described as his final address from the Republican People’s Party (CHP) parliamentary group, announcing his new political party as he formally signaled his departure from the country’s main opposition party. His exit marks a new era in the opposition, which is probably the most fragmented ever in the brief history of the Republic of Türkiye. It comes about two months after Özel was ousted from the chairmanship of CHP by a court verdict that reinstated his predecessor Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu to the top post in Türkiye’s oldest party.
Opening his speech (apparently his last as the parliamentary group chair of the party) with an emotional farewell, Özel told lawmakers he had taken the podium “with the sadness of a farewell whose time has come,” describing the moment as “a historic crossroads” for both himself and Turkish politics. Özel counts on CHP’s success in the 2024 municipal elections to finally bring CHP to power after successive defeats to the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party).
Addressing supporters, Özel said the newly formed party would emerge as the country’s main opposition party by a wide margin, among the slogans “Istiklal (Independence)” by a fervent audience, the rumored name of his new party. For weeks, he and his supporters were touting opinion polls reportedly showing his camp within the CHP ahead, long before he vaguely implied a new party. Retaining the position of main opposition party will require more than three dozen lawmakers, and although several CHP lawmakers openly sided with Özel, none has formally resigned from the CHP so far.
Reflecting on developments within the CHP since November 2023, Özel remarked that the events of the past several years would occupy an important place in Türkiye’s political history. He argued that while political victories and defeats would eventually become part of the historical record, the conduct of political actors during the period would also be remembered.
“When everything is over, we will not forget,” Özel warned. “No one should think that the attitudes, actions or conspiracies of today will simply be forgotten with time.” He was referring to Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who accepted the job as the party’s chair, amid protests of pro-Özel members of the party who branded him a “traitor.”
Around the same time Özel was announcing his resignation, Kılıçdaroğlu was visiting Rüzgarlı (Windy) Street of Ankara, a hub of shops selling construction materials. Earlier, he convened around a breakfast table at a cooperative of shopkeepers, hearing their economic complaints, strictly distancing himself from Özel’s agenda. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who spent the past two days in Istanbul at his residence, also had no scheduled events, fitting with his earlier comments on CHP’s divide, which he branded as a strictly internal matter of the opposition.
Path to new party
Özel said the split within the CHP stemmed from disagreements over the party’s future following its declining public support.
He said some within the party argued for maintaining the current course and focusing on the next local elections, while others warned that the CHP risked losing voters unless it embraced change.
Reiterating the current situation of the main opposition: “People will not go into another local election with us if we continue like this. If we act this way, they will turn their backs on us. Voter turnout will fall to a historic low. Don’t you see the polls? The party has dropped to around 13% or 14% and continues to decline,” Özel criticized, “A major defeat is coming. After another local election disaster, people will lose hope in the ballot box altogether. We have to act.'”
Özel said that disagreement marked the point at which party members “went their separate ways,” adding that he continued to value those who later joined his push for change as much as those who supported it from the outset. The Özel camp was fighting for a petition to hold a new congress in the CHP, assured that Özel would win the next intraparty election against Kılıçdaroğlu.
Challenge to Kılıçdaroğlu
In one of the most notable moments of his speech, Özel challenged CHP Chairperson Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, saying the party’s leadership should be decided directly by members.
“Let’s put a ballot box in front of the delegates from either congress, or before all 2 million party members, and let them decide who should lead the party,” Özel said. “If I receive less than 90% support, I will consider it a vote of no confidence and step aside. Are you willing to do the same?”
Özel described the launch of his new party as “opening a new path” after a court ruling declaring the previous CHP congress legally null and void, saying the decision to leave was “not a choice, but a necessity.”
He said 61 days had passed since the court’s ruling and accused party leaders of believing public criticism would quickly subside.
“We can either remain trapped in this deadlock and disappoint the people, or we can untie these knots one by one and clear the way for the country,” Özel said.
He added that throughout his years as CHP deputy parliamentary group chair and parliamentary group leader, he had defended the party’s legacy and values, and had fought through legal, political and public channels to protect them before concluding that a new political path had become unavoidable.
The “terror-free Türkiye” initiative for the disarmament of the PKK terrorist group took a new turn this week as Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş began visiting political parties to hold talks on a framework law to speed up the process.
The law is expected to reduce the sentences of PKK members who surrender to authorities.
Kurtulmuş on Tuesday met Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli. Government ally Bahçeli is the architect of the initiative, which informally began with his call to PKK jailed ringleader Abdullah Öcalan.
In 2024, Bahçeli urged Öcalan to convince the PKK to lay down its arms. Öcalan complied and made the call in February 2025. Soon, the PKK itself announced its dissolution.
Turkish security forces, however, have yet to confirm the group’s full disarmament, an essential component of the initiative. The Turkish Parliament is at the heart of the initiative and awaits confirmation of disarmament before proceeding with drafting the framework law. Turkish intelligence is tasked with monitoring the process abroad. The PKK’s senior cadres are holed up in northern Iraq, and apart from a ceremony in which the group’s members burned their weapons, there have been no signs of disarmament so far.
The parliament speaker’s next stop was the parliamentary offices of the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party). The DEM Party is known for its close links to the PKK, and its lawmakers served as informal envoys between Öcalan and Parliament, relaying his messages on the initiative to the public. A DEM Party delegation visited Öcalan in the island prison where he is held near Istanbul on Monday and released his message to the public hours before Kurtulmuş’s visit to the DEM Party on Tuesday.
In his message, Öcalan said they were on the eve of “creating the legal ground for the Kurdish-Turkish alliance.” “It is time to create that ground in a way that heeds mutual sensitivities. Let’s build a common life by abandoning narrow-minded approaches and act with patience to carve this path, which is a historic opportunity,” he said.
Later on Tuesday, Kurtulmuş was scheduled to visit other parties in Parliament, including the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
The new law will be temporary in nature and will clearly define the fate of PKK members, according to media reports. The law will also exclude Öcalan and other PKK members who were sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment, though it may offer leniency to other members of the terrorist group. The law will only be implemented after Turkish authorities confirm that the PKK has been fully dissolved and has abandoned its arms.
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) sources told the Sabah newspaper last month that the law’s rationale was to offer its benefits to members of the group only after they dissolved the organization and Türkiye was able to confirm this. The National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) are authorized to confirm the disarmament, but the National Security Council (NSC) will have the final say on the matter. Sources say the confirmation will be announced only after the disarmament process reaches around 80%.
It is unclear how long the law will remain in force, but a period of six months to one year is being considered. It will definitely exclude Öcalan, who was sentenced to death on June 29, 1999, on charges of treason, before his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. Any leniency in the prison terms of Öcalan and other PKK members convicted of acts of terrorism will be out of the question. Those convicted of grave acts of terrorism and currently at large abroad will also be excluded from the law.
The law does not grant amnesty to PKK members, and it will only annul terrorism charges for those imprisoned on charges of PKK membership and those who face prosecution for similar charges. This means early release from prison for some convicts or a significant reduction in their sentences. In most terrorism cases, suspects face a wide variety of charges in addition to those related to acts defined as terrorism under Turkish law. For instance, a convict involved in a bombing would only serve a sentence for manslaughter instead of terrorism. Currently, Türkiye has 4,300 people convicted of terrorism in its prisons. The case of each inmate will be reexamined by the courts once the law is implemented.
For PKK members residing abroad without any criminal record in Türkiye, the country plans to allow their return, although they will be subject to judicial supervision.
PKK’s senior cadres, who are currently hiding in the Qandil Mountains in northern Iraq, will also be excluded from the law, while sources say they have already left their hideouts for several other destinations. Sources also say it is believed that the majority of PKK members would not return to Türkiye even if the law is implemented and would instead prefer to settle in Iraq, where they have spent years.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced on Tuesday that Türkiye has been admitted to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) as a dialogue partner.
Fidan noted that only 11 countries had previously been granted this status by the bloc. The decision to accept Türkiye was taken in Manila, the Philippines, during the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. The three-day meeting opened on Tuesday with a focus on the U.S.-Israel-Iran war.
“Under the leadership of our esteemed President, we have achieved another significant milestone in our foreign policy, which is capable of taking a multidimensional view of the world and global developments while influencing the international agenda and the global system. This places Türkiye in the highest status within ASEAN after full membership. Following our application in 2024, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to my fellow foreign ministers who supported our bid throughout the process, as well as to the Philippines, the current ASEAN chair, and the ASEAN Secretariat,” Fidan said in a social media post.
“This development is of great importance in enhancing our influence in the Asia-Pacific, the eastern pillar of our global diplomacy, advancing our long-term strategy toward the ASEAN region, and bringing our existing initiatives to fruition. Since laying the foundation of our institutional relations with ASEAN in 2010, we have expanded cooperation with ASEAN member states across all fields and increased our bilateral trade volume from $6.5 billion to $16 billion. With Dialogue Partner status, we believe our political and economic cooperation with the ASEAN region, home to nearly 700 million people and an economy worth more than $4 trillion, will deepen even further. I hope this new chapter will be beneficial for both our country and the ASEAN member states,” he added.
The Ankara Metropolitan Municipality (ABB), run by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), is setting records in the sale of its valuable assets and properties, rapidly depleting its resources, according to a report by the Sabah newspaper. Plots of land, shops and residences in prime locations are being put up for sale one after another.
The municipality, led by Mansur Yavaş, a popular figure in the party who was once regarded as a future presidential candidate, will launch a new tender on Thursday for the sale of several properties with a starting price of TL 1.3 billion ($28 million). With the latest tender, the municipality’s total real estate sales over the past seven years have exceeded TL 35 billion.
The rapid liquidation of public properties in sought-after districts such as Etimesgut, Çankaya, Altındağ and Mamak, along with the involvement of municipal subsidiaries in the process, has fueled criticism over what opponents describe as the municipality’s failure to improve public services despite the revenue generated from the sales.
According to the latest announcement by the Real Estate Branch Directorate of ABB’s Department of Real Estate and Expropriation, 11 more valuable municipal properties have been put up for sale.
When the real estate policy pursued by Mansur Yavaş since he took office in 2019 is examined through the figures, the scale of the process becomes clear. What began in 2019 with just three tenders has, by 2026, grown into 110 separate tenders, effectively becoming what critics describe as a “real estate liquidation.” Between 2019 and 2021, annual property sales averaged between TL 450 million and TL 570 million. In 2022, sales rose sharply to TL 1.4 billion. In 2023, they increased further to TL 6.5 billion before reaching a record TL 11 billion in 2024. In 2025, sales remained at approximately TL 10 billion.
Critics argue that how these enormous resources have been spent remains a major unanswered question.
The sale of municipal assets has not been limited to the main municipal budget; municipal subsidiaries have also become part of the process. In particular, through PORTAŞ Inc., which operates in the construction sector, hotels, commercial properties and land have been sold off rapidly. The total value of the properties sold by PORTAŞ has been reported to exceed TL 344 million. Critics argue that there is no corresponding major infrastructure or transportation project visible across Ankara that reflects this level of investment.
Under Yavaş (whose last name literally means “slow” in Turkish), the capital added few new metro lines, nor expanded the existing ones. Repeated delays on two major metro lines, cancelled public tenders and engineering issues add to mass transit woes of the capital, where the traffic congestion, though still far behind Istanbul, is worsening.
The municipality was also criticized by political opponents for almost regular water outages and low pressure in the water grid, something blamed on a lack of spending on infrastructure improvement.
Frequent flooding in the capital, which submerges underpasses and narrow streets, is also blamed on underwhelming investment in drainage systems.
Greece is accelerating efforts to strengthen its air force with Israeli-made weapons systems as the possibility of the U.S. resuming sales of F-35 fighter jets to Türkiye raises concerns over the regional military balance, according to Israeli and Greek media reports.
The issue gained renewed attention after U.S. President Donald Trump said during this month’s NATO summit in Ankara that his administration would reconsider Türkiye’s return to the F-35 program. Ankara was removed from the program in 2019 after acquiring Russia’s S-400 air defense system.
Israeli business daily Globes, citing Greece’s Kathimerini newspaper, reported that Athens has moved into the final stage of certifying Israeli-made Rampage air-to-surface missiles and Spice precision-guided munitions for operational use on its F-16 fighter jets. Final certification is expected in the coming weeks, with live-fire testing scheduled for September.
According to the reports, Greek authorities decided to move ahead with integrating the systems before testing is completed, reflecting what analysts describe as growing concern over Türkiye’s potential acquisition of fifth-generation fighter aircraft.
The Rampage missile, jointly developed by Elbit Systems, Israel Aerospace Industries and Tomer, is designed to strike targets at ranges of roughly 150 to 250 kilometers and can be integrated onto multiple combat aircraft platforms.
Kathimerini also reported that the Trump administration is expected to decide in September on Greece’s request to modernize an additional 38 F-16 fighter jets. If approved, the estimated 1 billion euro ($1.14 billion) program would increase the number of Greece’s upgraded F-16s from 56 to 120.
Separately, Israel and Greece continue negotiations over the proposed “Achilles Shield” air defense project, valued at approximately 3 billion euros, according to Globes. The initiative envisions equipping Greece with a multilayered Israeli-made air defense network.
Greece and Israel have expanded military and defense cooperation in recent years, underpinned by close economic and diplomatic relations.
The two countries also operate a joint air training center in Greece and have held regular joint military exercises, reflecting a growing strategic partnership in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday said Türkiye played a decisive diplomatic role in blocking U.S. and Israeli efforts to destabilize and partition Iran during the recent conflict, praising Ankara for maintaining a firm position throughout the crisis.
Speaking to Javad Moghouei during an online interview, Araghchi said Türkiye actively engaged with Washington and regional actors while opposing any attempt to fuel internal unrest or territorial fragmentation in Iran.
His remarks came as tensions between the United States and Iran continued following the collapse of the Islamabad agreement, which had previously helped reduce hostilities.
Araghchi said the risk of Iran’s fragmentation emerged during the early days of the conflict. Recalling events on the fourth day of the war, he said U.S. President Donald Trump contacted leaders in Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).
The Iranian foreign minister said he subsequently spoke with Kurdistan Democratic Party leader Masoud Barzani, Patriotic Union of Kurdistan leader Bafel Talabani and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, warning that Iran would respond to any threat originating from the Kurdish region.
He also said he held talks with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan that same evening, describing Türkiye as a key diplomatic actor during the crisis.
“Türkiye played a very effective role. They held talks with the Americans and maintained a very firm position on this issue,” Araghchi noted. “These collective efforts prevented the plot to divide Iran and create internal unrest from succeeding.”
The conflict between the U.S. and Iran has flared up again, with the U.S. military concluding its ninth consecutive night of attacks on Iran early Monday. Iran has been responding with attacks on countries hosting U.S. military bases in the region.
The U.S. has targeted bridges, electrical facilities and other targets in Iran and Tehran has retaliated by hitting power and desalination plants in Kuwait, threatening daily life in that small, oil-rich desert nation.
Iran also has stepped up its threats to further expand the strikes, drawing a warning overnight from the United Arab Emirates.
Kuwait and Bahrain again activated air defenses Sunday morning as they warned of incoming Iranian drones and missiles.
Mossad’s plan
His comments echoed previous media reports claiming that Israel had sought U.S. backing for plans aimed at encouraging separatist unrest inside Iran during the opening phase of the conflict.
Araghchi also accused exiled Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s last shah, of supporting plans to partition the country during a visit to Israel. He alleged that Pahlavi proposed allowing border regions to be separated while seeking to rule the country’s center, although he did not provide evidence to support the claim.
Israeli media previously reported that Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency proposed supporting armed Kurdish separatist groups in western Iran to increase pressure on Tehran. Those reports claimed the proposal was ultimately shelved by the White House following strong objections from Türkiye.
Separately, Araghchi described difficult negotiations with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, saying he reminded the American official that Iranian negotiators had continued diplomatic contacts despite facing the threat of military strikes.
“You cannot threaten us or buy us,” Araghchi said, adding that Iran would not back down under military or political pressure.
Meanwhile, reports from Russia suggested that Mojtaba Khamenei, who succeeded his father Ayatollah Ali Khamenei following his reported death during the conflict, could hold his first foreign contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russia’s state-run TASS news agency cited an unnamed Iranian official as saying Moscow remained Tehran’s closest strategic partner. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin was prepared to speak with Iran’s leadership whenever necessary.
Developments in field
Fighting between the United States and Iran continued over the weekend. U.S. Central Command said American forces targeted Iranian command centers, missile launch sites, drone facilities and communications infrastructure. Iran responded with strikes targeting locations in the Gulf region and what it described as an enemy command center in Syria.
The U.S. military also reported that one American service member was killed and another wounded in northern Iraq while attempting to safely dispose of an unexploded Iranian drone. Days earlier, two U.S. troops were killed, four were wounded and another was reported missing in Jordan.
Amid the escalating conflict, Reuters reported that mediators had proposed a 10-day pause in hostilities to revive negotiations between Washington and Tehran, while assessments circulating within the Trump administration suggested U.S. munitions stockpiles had been strained by the prolonged fighting.
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