Niger’s President Abdourahamane Tchiani met President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday in Ankara in his inaugural visit to Türkiye. The two-day visit is an opportunity for the leader of the West African country to deepen blossoming ties with Türkiye and vice versa.

Tchiani, invited by Erdoğan, arrived with a busy agenda on bilateral relations, including talks on regional security, counterterrorism and economic ties.

Two countries escalated the level of relations after Tchiani came to power in 2023. Since 2023, the West African country also downgraded ties with the United States and France. Niger, in the meantime, seeks to reach out to new partners elsewhere.

Türkiye’s diplomatic relations with Niger date back to 1967, but Ankara opened its first embassy in Niamey in 2012, months before Niger set up its own embassy in the Turkish capital. Since 2012, two countries signed 29 agreements. Erdoğan, then prime minister, visited Niger in 2013, one year before the Nigerien president visited Türkiye. In 2012, the two countries signed the “Agreement of Trade, Economic and Technical Cooperation,” laying the groundwork for future economic relations.

Although diplomatic ties remained stable, Türkiye sought to expand cooperation further with the implementation of the Africa Action Plan. This evolved into the Africa Partnership Policy starting in 2013. In the past two decades under Erdoğan’s Justice and Development Party (AK Party) governments, Türkiye’s relations with the African countries flourished in every field, from trade to security, culture and development. The country signed trade and economic cooperation agreements with 50 African countries in recent years. It signed agreements of incentives for mutual investments with 32 countries, agreements to prevent double taxation with 17 countries, military framework agreements with 35 countries, military training cooperation deals with 21 countries and defense industry cooperation agreements with 29 countries. It set up joint business councils with 49 African countries. In other venues, Türkiye’s Eximbank became the first non-African shareholder of Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) in 2023. Türkiye is also hosting some 65,000 international students from African countries. In terms of development aid, Türkiye contributed to the construction of hospitals in Niger, Sudan and Somalia.

Türkiye increased the number of its diplomatic missions to 44 in 2024, from 12 in 2002, across the continent. Similarly, the number of embassies of the African countries in Türkiye rose to 38 in 2024, from only 10 in 2008.

Türkiye’s trade volume with the African countries rose to about $40 billion by the end of 2025, from around $4.3 billion in 2002. Turkish investments in Africa rose to $10 billion in 2024, from $67 million in 2003. Turkish contractors are behind more than 2,000 projects across the continent.

Elsewhere, Türkiye boosted ties with the African Union (AU), with its status in the body elevated from observer to strategic partner in 2008. In the same year, Istanbul hosted the first edition of the Türkiye-Africa Partnership Summit. The summit’s next edition is expected to be held later this year after a five-year hiatus.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Türkiye’s Constitutional Court on Thursday annulled a provision of the Civil Code that allows indefinite alimony payments following divorce, paving the way for a new legal framework on spousal support.

The court ruled by majority vote to strike down the provision contained in Article 175 of the Turkish Civil Code, which grants a spouse who would fall into poverty due to divorce the right to request alimony from the other party on an indefinite basis.

According to the ruling, the annulment will take effect nine months after its publication, giving lawmakers time to prepare a replacement regulation.

The decision came after the Antalya 12th Family Court applied to the Constitutional Court seeking the cancellation of the provision’s indefinite duration requirement.

Justice Minister Akın Gürlek welcomed the ruling, describing it as an important step toward ensuring fairness and justice in family law.

“We consider the Constitutional Court’s annulment decision regarding the ‘indefinite alimony’ provision in the Turkish Civil Code to be extremely valuable in terms of justice and equity,” Gürlek said in a statement on social media.

Gürlek said the government had already been working on possible reforms as part of a broader judicial reform package, citing longstanding public demands and concerns raised through legal practice.

He said the government would prepare a new legislative framework that protects the rights of both parties after divorce while preventing individuals from being subjected to what he described as unfair lifelong financial obligations.

Taking into account the transition period granted by the court, Gürlek said the government would submit a new proposal to Parliament that balances social justice, family values and individual rights.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will visit Bangladesh on June 5-6 at the invitation of Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Dr. Khalilur Rahman, marking his first visit to the South Asian country since taking office, Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry said Thursday.

According to ministry sources, Fidan is expected to be received by Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman and hold talks with Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman during the visit.

The discussions are expected to focus on strengthening bilateral ties, expanding economic cooperation and exchanging views on regional and global developments, including recent developments in the Middle East, Iran and South Asia.

Fidan is expected to congratulate Rahman on his election as president of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly and reaffirm Türkiye’s support for closer cooperation with Bangladesh across a range of sectors, including trade, defense industry, energy, education, culture, science and health care.

The Turkish foreign minister is also expected to reiterate the two countries’ goal of increasing bilateral trade volume to $2 billion. Trade between Türkiye and Bangladesh reached approximately $1.36 billion in 2025, with Turkish exports totaling $430.6 million and imports from Bangladesh reaching $926.4 million.

Bilateral relations

The visit comes amid growing diplomatic engagement between the two countries following the formation of Bangladesh’s new government in February. Deputy Foreign Minister Ambassador Berris Ekinci attended the inauguration ceremony of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Feb. 17 and held separate meetings with Bangladeshi officials, including leaders from the country’s political establishment.

Foreign Minister Khalilur Rahman, who assumed office in the new government and was nominated by Bangladesh for the presidency of the 81st U.N. General Assembly, made his first bilateral foreign visit to Türkiye on March 14. He also attended the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in April.

A key component of Fidan’s visit will be a trip to Cox’s Bazar, home to more than 1 million Rohingya Muslims who fled violence and conflict in neighboring Myanmar.

There, Fidan is expected to visit refugee camps and inspect humanitarian assistance projects carried out by Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), the Turkish Red Crescent (Kızılay), the Turkish Diyanet Foundation (TDV) and the Health Ministry. He is also scheduled to visit the Türkiye Field Hospital operating in the region.

Türkiye has remained one of the leading international contributors to humanitarian relief efforts for Rohingya refugees. According to Turkish officials, the total value of humanitarian assistance provided by Türkiye for Rohingya Muslims has exceeded $80 million since the beginning of the crisis.

Turkish institutions continue to support refugees in areas including health care, shelter, education and infrastructure. The field hospital established by Türkiye in Cox’s Bazar in 2018 provides medical services to approximately 1,000 patients daily, including both Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi citizens.

The facility employs 85 personnel, including 30 Turkish and 55 local staff members.

Officials said Fidan is expected to underline Türkiye’s commitment to keeping the Rohingya crisis high on the international agenda and to continuing humanitarian support for displaced communities while emphasizing Bangladesh’s strategic role in promoting peace, stability and security in South Asia.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Türkiye’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) is facing the prospect of new disciplinary proceedings and possible expulsions after Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who was reinstated as party leader following a court ruling invalidating the party’s 38th Ordinary Congress, reportedly prepared to take action against several senior party figures.

The party’s High Disciplinary Board (YDK) convened Thursday at party headquarters in Ankara following the reinstatement of Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu as chair.

During the one-hour session, Izmir lawmaker Mahir Polat was elected chairperson of the High Disciplinary Board, while Ahmet Ersen Özsoy was elected deputy chairperson and Sezgin Kaya was chosen as board secretary by majority vote.

While no disciplinary files were reviewed during the session, party sources say future meetings could address expulsion requests and disciplinary measures against prominent CHP members.

The meeting came days after a court issued an “absolute nullity” ruling that annulled the results of the CHP congress and restored Kılıçdaroğlu to the party leadership, triggering a fresh internal power struggle.

Shortly after returning to office, Kılıçdaroğlu signaled a tougher stance toward internal party disputes.

“They ask me what I am going to do. I will hold people accountable,” he said, adding that his immediate priority would be restoring discipline within the party and organizing a “clean and uncontested congress” as soon as possible.

Speculation has intensified over potential disciplinary actions against senior party members. Columnist Mahmut Övür told Sabah newspaper that Kılıçdaroğlu was preparing to refer several figures to disciplinary mechanisms.

According to Övür, names circulating in party circles include Deputy Chairperson Veli Ağbaba, parliamentary group deputy chair Ali Mahir Başarır, Burhanettin Bulut, lawmaker Turan Taşkın Özer and Deputy Chairperson Özgür Karabat.

The CHP’s High Disciplinary Board is the party’s highest disciplinary authority and consists of 15 members. Any decisions regarding disciplinary referrals or expulsions would likely play a significant role in shaping the party’s future leadership structure.

The court ruling has intensified tensions between Kılıçdaroğlu and Özel, who has rejected the legitimacy of the legal process and accused the government of interfering in opposition politics.

Addressing CHP lawmakers during a parliamentary group meeting on June 2, Özel criticized the court decision and called on Kılıçdaroğlu to withdraw legal proceedings before the Court of Cassation in an effort to resolve the crisis.

“If a step back is taken and a congress is held, this chapter will be closed,” Özel said.

The government has denied accusations of involvement in the CHP dispute.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan described the developments as an internal opposition matter and rejected claims that his administration played any role in the judicial process.

“We are observing these developments from a safe distance,” Erdoğan said.

“The political and legal struggle that has moved from congress halls to court corridors has nothing to do with us. We were not involved, and we will not be involved,” he added.

On the other hand, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli has also weighed in on the dispute, criticizing what he described as attempts to create a “parallel leadership” structure within the CHP.

In remarks published by Türkgün newspaper, Bahçeli accused Özel of deepening the crisis by establishing an alternative center of authority within the party and challenged opposition figures’ calls for public demonstrations.

Bahçeli also criticized references by CHP officials to “political, legal and physical struggle,” questioning the meaning of such statements and warning against escalating political tensions into street protests.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Özgür Özel is almost cocksure to get back his chair as the legal battle on the matter lingers. The former chair of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) was forced to leave his office when a court ruled for the reinstatement of Özel’s predecessor, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, last month, in a case where the Özel administration is accused of buying votes in a 2023 intra-party election. He now mulls founding a new party, though he also remains determined to remain in CHP.

Özel was defiant on Tuesday as he held his first parliamentary group meeting at the party where he now serves as the said group’s chair. On Wednesday, he met a group of journalists and answered questions about his future and rumors of the establishment of a new party by his loyalists. “We are not committed to setting up a new party,” he told journalists, while underlining that it might be “worst-case scenario.”

“Nobody can stop the wind,” he said, referring to his call for a new election in the party, which he is confident of winning. “We are engaged in a great march to govern. We will not do this by leaving the party,” he said.

CHP trails ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in most opinion polls, but it has suffered successive election defeats in more than the past two decades, except for a strong comeback in 2024’s municipal elections. Özel advocates an early election, ahead of the 2028 presidential vote.

Özel’s camp within CHP took their case to the Supreme Court of Appeals, challenging the absolute nullification verdict by a lower court. The higher court is expected to tackle the case before the start of a judicial summer holiday beginning on July 20. The lower court has not referred the case to the Supreme Court so far. The Supreme Court may issue one of four rulings, according to legal pundits. It may uphold the absolute nullification verdict, it can overturn it, overturn the verdict partially in terms of ouster of the Özel administration while upholding the verdict on annulment of the 2023 election and finally, it can overturn the verdict in terms of interpretation of the case. The last verdict will likely require a retrial in the case. Supreme Board of Election (YSK) on Wednesday announced that it rejected an appeal by CHP, citing that the Board was not the appeals authority for the lawsuit.

Although it is unclear when the Supreme Court would respond to the appeal, several politicians were quick to urge the court to make up its mind soon. Among them was Devlet Bahçeli, chair of government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). Bahçeli on Tuesday said the top court should issue the verdict as soon as possible, saying that it was a sensitive matter. Bahçeli reasoned that the matter was urgent as it had the potential to hurt the democracy and may lead to riots. Tuncer Bakırhan, co-chair of the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM) echoed the same concern and called the Supreme Court to end “this bizarre situation.”

Latest developments, however, show that it will be an uphill battle for Özel, who may even lose his immunity from prosecution as a lawmaker. Two suspects testified in a case regarding the vote-buying on Tuesday and statements by one of them indicate the corruption in the 2023 intra-party vote. Özkan Yalım, former mayor of the western city of Uşak for CHP who was recently arrested in a separate case of corruption, told investigators how he worked to sway the vote for Özel. His statements reported by the Sabah newspaper on Tuesday show Yalım was among the supporters of Özel who obtained written pledges from 115 delegates eligible for voting in the 2023 election to vote for Özel. Yalım admitted that the Özel camp also offered jobs at CHP-run municipalities for children of at least one delegate. He also told investigators that Özel asked him to pay cash to cover expenses of the congress where the intra-party election was held and he handed TL 1 million to a suspect who was arrested last month, to be delivered to Özel.

On Wednesday, the Sabah newspaper reported that the Özel camp would also attempt disobedience against the new administration. Özel reportedly told the party’s chairs at the branches in 81 provinces and their districts not to comply with orders, decisions by the Kılıçdaroğlu administration. Party sources told the newspaper that this means branch chairs would not evacuate the offices if they were asked to resign by Kılıçdaroğlu. Several chairs already sided with Özel. Özcan Dağıstanlı, the party’s chair for the northern province of Düzce, was quoted last week as saying that he would not “give a f…” if Kılıçdaroğlu ousts him. According to the Sabah report, Özel offered future candidacy for parliamentary seats to branch chairs in return for disobeying the orders of the Kılıçdaroğlu administration.

CHP’s internal affair

On Wednesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has been less vocal about the state of the CHP since Kılıçdaroğlu’s return, elaborated more on the matter but insisted that it was the CHP’s internal affair. Özel stepped up anti-Erdoğan rhetoric after he lost his seat and claimed that the case against him was politically motivated. While his supporters openly branded Kılıçdaroğlu as a “traitor,” Özel took aim at the government instead.

Speaking at an event in Ankara, Erdoğan said the CHP must get accustomed to such “scenes of shame,” referring to the feud between Özel and Kılıçdaroğlu, “as long as they see politics as a way to make a career and money instead of a way to serve the public.

“They succumbed to a fight for a seat. They call people they once admired ‘traitor’ now,” he said. Without naming Özel, Erdoğan said they would “ignore those who got angry like a child whose candy was taken away and pick on us.”

“Nobody can overshadow the reputation of the politics, the quality of Turkish democracy,” he said. Erdoğan also stated that it was “of no use to anyone to marginalize politics,” referring to the threat of riots by the Özel camp. Özel himself hinted at “street rage” if the legal process against them concludes unfavorably. “May Allah not let this country be governed by those who cannot even come to terms with each other (at the same party),” Erdoğan said.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

The Turkish Naval Forces Command will begin its Sea Wolf-2/2026 (“Denizkurdu”) exercise on Thursday, conducting large-scale operations across the Black Sea, the Sea of Marmara, the Aegean Sea and the Eastern Mediterranean until June 14.

The exercise will involve 125 naval assets, 60 aircraft and approximately 18,000 personnel from the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK), including land, naval, air, gendarmerie, coast guard and special forces units, Rear Adm. Alper Doğukanlı said during a briefing at the Naval Warfare Center Command in Gölcük.

Doğukanlı said the drill aims to evaluate the operational command and control capabilities of naval units, enhance combat readiness and improve decision-making skills in a multi-threat environment while testing interoperability among participating forces.

According to the exercise schedule, combat readiness activities and live-fire training will take place from June 4-6, followed by operational scenarios in a multi-threat environment from June 7-10.

A distinguished visitors day will be held in the Gulf of Antalya on June 11, while port visits by participating vessels between June 12 and 14 will conclude the exercise.

The drill will also include the participation of several civilian institutions, including Türkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), the Directorate General of Maritime Affairs, the National Medical Rescue Team, the General Directorate of Forestry and the Turkish Red Crescent (Kızılay).

A series of live-fire demonstrations featuring domestically developed defense systems are planned during the exercise. Doğukanlı said the distinguished visitors day will include launches of the ATMACA anti-ship missile, the AKYA heavyweight torpedo and the HISAR-D naval air defense missile.

Naval helicopters will also conduct firing exercises with Penguin and TEMREN missiles as well as training torpedoes.

Bayraktar TB3 armed unmanned aerial vehicles operating from the amphibious assault ship TCG Anadolu are scheduled to fire MAM-L and MAM-T smart munitions.

For the first time in a Turkish military exercise, a total of eight guided missiles and one torpedo will be fired. The PIRANA kamikaze unmanned surface vessel will also conduct an attack on a surface target from a distance of 3.5 kilometers at a speed of 45 kilometers per hour.

Live-fire activities will be conducted against four real targets in a secured 2,488-square-nautical-mile area of the Eastern Mediterranean protected by 27 ships and four aircraft.

The Daily Sabah Newsletter

Keep up to date with what’s happening in Turkey,
it’s region and the world.

SIGN ME UP

You can unsubscribe at any time. By signing up you are agreeing to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.