Politics
Orthodox rights, Turkish law must merge in Halki Seminary case: Expert
A Reuters report that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has instructed officials to hold talks on reopening the Greek Orthodox Halki Seminary, which has remained closed since 1971, along with his recent meeting with Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew and previous remarks made alongside U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House, has renewed questions over the future of the historic theological school.
“The fundamental issue is not whether the seminary should reopen, but under what legal framework it would operate,” Zakir Avşar, a professor from Ankara Hacı Bayram Veli University, told Daily Sabah. “If such an institution were established outside Türkiye’s higher education system as an autonomous or semi-sovereign entity, it could erode the state’s authority to regulate and oversee education.”
According to a report by Reuters, President Erdoğan has reportedly instructed officials to begin talks on reopening the Greek Orthodox Halki Seminary.
The move followed Erdoğan’s June 16 meeting with Bartholomew at the Presidential Complex in Ankara.
The meeting, which was held behind closed doors, has fueled speculation that efforts to reopen the historic seminary may be gaining momentum.
“The question of reopening the Halki Seminary is frequently reduced to a debate over religious freedom in Türkiye,” Avşar said.
He noted that the issue is far more layered, involving constitutional law, minority rights, international law, state sovereignty and diplomatic negotiations. It cannot be properly assessed without taking into account both its historical background and its legal foundations.
The Halki Seminary, located on Heybeliada, was founded in 1844 under the name Higher Orthodox School of Theology to train Orthodox clergy.
The seminary effectively ceased operations in 1971 after its theology department was closed following a ruling by Türkiye’s Constitutional Court requiring private higher education institutions to be affiliated with state universities.
The patriarchate declined to accept the requirement, bringing theological education at the institution to an end.
“In modern state theory, education is regarded as one of the core functions of state sovereignty. The provision of religious education for minority communities cannot be considered outside this constitutional framework,” Avşar said.
He offered that any potential model should therefore be designed in full compliance with the constitutional order and national education legislation.
Following the meeting between Erdoğan and Bartholomew on June 16, Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, the patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church, was also received by the Turkish leader on Tuesday in Ankara. The patriarch was accompanied by a delegation of clerics from the community.
The Syriac community had its first church in the republic era built under Erdoğan’s governments. The church was opened in 2023 in Istanbul’s Yeşilköy neighborhood in a ceremony attended by Erdoğan. It is estimated that about 17,000 Syriac residents live in the city. Assyrian Christianity traces its history to communities that lived in the A.D. first century in a region stretching from southeastern Türkiye to Syria and Iraq.
Avşar noted that under international human rights law, the ability of religious communities to train their own clergy is generally recognized as part of the institutional dimension of freedom of religion, adding that this principle has also been reflected in various rulings of the European Court of Human Rights.
“However, contemporary legal scholarship does not treat this as an absolute or unrestricted right,” he said.
Reminding that legitimate limitations based on public order, constitutional sovereignty and national security are recognized even in liberal democracies, he underlined, “The issue is therefore not a conflict between religious freedom and state sovereignty, but rather one of maintaining a careful normative balance between the two.”
The seminary provided a rigorous education in theology, philosophy and the arts, fostering a generation of educated clergy capable of leading the Orthodox community both spiritually and intellectually.
Halki quickly gained a reputation as the premier institution for Orthodox theological education, attracting students from Greece, the Balkans, the Middle East and parts of Eastern Europe. Its curriculum encompassed Orthodox doctrine, biblical studies, liturgics and pastoral care, preparing graduates for leadership roles within the church.
According to Avşar, Erdoğan’s approach to this issue, as well as to other areas involving religious sensitivities, is based on freedom, fairness and the preservation of sovereignty.
“What stands out here is the preference for controlled diplomatic flexibility rather than categorical rejection or unconditional acceptance,” he added.
Moreover, the state of Halki seminary was among the topics discussed between Erdoğan and Trump during the two leaders’ meeting at the White House on Sept. 28, 2025.
Erdoğan signaled that he will soon meet with the Greek Orthodox patriarch to discuss the possible reopening of the school. “We are ready to do whatever is incumbent upon us regarding the Heybeliada school,” Erdoğan told Trump during their meeting. “I will have the opportunity to discuss this matter with Bartholomew upon my return.”
Avşar stressed that a sound solution would require a model that reconciles rights-based demands with the institutional continuity of the state within the same legal framework, rather than treating them as opposing poles.
“Türkiye’s historical state experience, legal tradition and diplomatic capacity provide a strong intellectual and institutional basis for establishing this balance,” he concluded.
Turkish Cypriot President Tufan Erhürman and Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides are set to meet on Oct. 13 in the United Nations-controlled buffer zone on the divided island of Cyprus, according to reports Wednesday.
The meeting between the leaders of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and the Greek Cypriot administration is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. local time and is expected to focus on efforts surrounding the Cyprus issue and confidence-building measures.
The two leaders last met on Sept. 17 at the office of the U.N. Good Offices Mission in the buffer zone. Their closed-door talks, which began at 11 a.m., lasted approximately two hours.
Following the meeting, the U.N. said Erhürman and Christodoulides had exchanged views on confidence-building measures, methodology and substantive aspects of the Cyprus issue.
Erhürman said after the talks that the two sides had yet to reach an agreement on confidence-building measures.
“On the remaining substantive issues, the two sides are only at the stage of listening to each other’s thoughts and views. That is the clear picture,” he said, noting that the meeting was “better” than their previous talks but that the sides remained at the stage of listening to each other’s positions on substantive issues.
He also stressed that concrete progress on the island would be necessary before another meeting could be held in an expanded format.
Erhürman and Christodoulides later traveled to New York for the U.N. General Assembly following their Sept. 17 meeting. The two leaders did not hold a bilateral meeting during their time in New York, although talks were held between their respective delegations.
Cyprus has remained divided for more than five decades between the Turkish Cypriot north and the Greek Cypriot south despite a series of diplomatic efforts by the U.N. to achieve a comprehensive settlement. The TRNC was established in 1983 and is recognized only by Türkiye, while the Greek Cypriot administration represents the island internationally and joined the European Union in 2004.
Turkish officials and leaders in Turkish Cyprus have increasingly advocated a two-state solution to the dispute, arguing that decades of United Nations-led negotiations for a federal settlement have failed to produce results.
The upcoming Oct. 13 meeting comes as efforts continue to find common ground between the two sides and determine the next steps in the long-running Cyprus issue.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday that Türkiye remains ready to support efforts to establish direct contacts between Russia and Ukraine, stressing the importance of diplomacy aimed at finding a solution to the war.
Erdoğan and Putin discussed bilateral ties as well as regional and global issues during a phone call, Türkiye’s Directorate of Communications said in a statement.
During the call, Erdoğan emphasized the importance of ongoing efforts to ensure the safety of navigation in the Black Sea.
He said Türkiye was always ready to contribute to initiatives aimed at establishing direct contacts between Moscow and Kyiv and underlined the importance of solution-oriented diplomatic efforts, according to the statement.
The two leaders also discussed Türkiye-Russia relations and other regional and international developments, the directorate said, without providing further details.
Erdoğan also congratulated Putin on his birthday and on his party’s performance in Russia’s Duma elections.
The opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has alleged that vehicles, equipment and other assets worth more than TL 250 million (approximately $5.1 million) were reported to have been removed or gone missing from its provincial and district offices during the formation of the New Party (YP).
The alleged losses followed a court ruling declaring the CHP’s leadership election legally invalid, triggering a period of internal turmoil and disputes over party property.
According to findings cited by CHP officials, the vehicles and equipment were allegedly taken from party offices across Türkiye’s 81 provinces, Sabah newspaper reported.
Individual criminal complaints have been filed with prosecutors under the coordination of CHP Deputy Chair Tahsin Tarhan, seeking investigations into the missing assets.
The allegations also involve seven district headquarters previously rented by the CHP. Rental agreements were reportedly changed following arrangements with property owners, allowing the buildings to be transferred to the New Party without the CHP leadership’s knowledge.
The affected districts reportedly include Akyurt and Altındağ in Ankara.
A court ruling in a case concerning alleged irregularities at the CHP’s November 2023 convention declared the congress null and void and reinstated Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu and the previous party administration.
In late July, following escalating tensions within the party, Özel and 90 lawmakers resigned from the CHP and established the New Party.
Meanwhile, several missing CHP vehicles were reportedly located in industrial repair facilities and scrapyards. Party officials alleged that many returned vehicles had been deliberately damaged, potentially requiring millions of liras in repairs.
The whereabouts of office furniture, computers, sound systems and air conditioning units remain unknown.
CHP officials further alleged that equipment belonging to the party had been transferred to newly established New Party offices.
Turkish defense companies showcased advanced underwater systems, sonar technologies and unmanned maritime platforms in the western province of Izmir as part of the Türkiye-hosted Nusret-2026 Invitation Exercise.
The exhibition at the Port of Alsancak brought together 16 defense companies presenting technologies for underwater operations and mine countermeasures to Turkish and foreign military representatives participating in the exercise.
The Nusret-2026 Invitation Exercise is being held from Oct. 6-16 in the Gulf of Izmir and off the coast of Karadeniz Ereğli. Alongside Turkish forces, the exercise includes units from NATO’s Standing Mine Countermeasures Group 2 (SNMCMG2) and the Black Sea Mine Countermeasures Task Group (MCM Black Sea).
Havelsan presented a remotely operated underwater vehicle developed with the company’s own resources that can operate at depths of up to 300 meters (985 feet).
Zekiye Bilinç Serintuna, Havelsan’s underwater systems group leader, said the platform is equipped with sensors and systems enabling navigation and precise positioning. It can be used for military and civilian missions, including search and rescue, mine countermeasures, pipeline monitoring and ship hull inspections.
Meteksan Defense also showcased underwater acoustic technologies, including sonar systems developed for ships and submarines.
The company introduced two new products at Nusret-2026: the Submarine and Underwater Vehicle Detection System (SUVDES) and the National Synthetic Aperture Sonar System (MİLSAS).
SUVDES is designed for tasks including harbor security, protection of critical facilities and the detection of unmanned maritime vehicles.
State-owned defense manufacturer MKE, meanwhile, displayed several systems developed for naval warfare.
They included the Denizhan national naval gun, the Pirana kamikaze unmanned surface vehicle and the Malaman smart bottom mine, alongside infantry rifles used by naval forces.
A total of 20 ships, five aircraft and various unmanned systems are taking part in the exercise, which focuses on mine countermeasures and maritime operations.
Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi will be in Athens on Thursday. Ministry sources said Wednesday that the purpose of the visit was “cooperation in fighting against transboundary crime, terrorist groups and next-generation criminal gangs.”
He is scheduled to meet Greek Minister for Migration and Asylum Thanos Plevris and Minister for Citizen Protection Michalis Chrisochoidis. Çiftçi’s talks will focus on joint steps in the above-mentioned areas.
The Turkish and Greek officials will discuss extradition of members of criminal gangs and how to enhance cooperation in this area, ministry sources also said.
Çiftçi stepped up Türkiye’s contacts with neighboring countries in the joint fight against transboundary crimes and recently paid visits to Bulgaria and Georgia to this end.
The minister last visited Athens in April for a trilateral meeting with Plevris and Bulgarian Interior Minister Emil Dechev on security-related issues affecting the three neighboring countries.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that any confrontation between Türkiye and Greece over the Aegean Sea or the island of Cyprus would benefit neither country nor the U.S., stressing Washington’s commitment to preventing tensions between the two NATO allies.
Speaking in an interview with Greek newspaper Kathimerini during a visit to Athens, Rubio dismissed the prospect of a conflict between Ankara and Athens, describing such a scenario as unthinkable.
“It wouldn’t be good for anybody. It wouldn’t be good for Greece. It wouldn’t be good for Türkiye. It wouldn’t be good for the United States,” Rubio underlined, adding that Washington would not allow such a situation to develop.
Rubio also addressed the proposed Great Sea Interconnector (GSI) electricity project linking Greece, the Greek Cypriot administration and Israel, acknowledging potential obstacles and emphasizing the importance of diplomatic engagement.
He said Washington intended to use diplomatic channels to encourage solutions, arguing that sensitive disagreements were best addressed through private negotiations.
Highlighting Türkiye’s strategic importance, Rubio noted that Ankara had previously hosted negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and maintained cooperation with Washington on several regional issues.
On Türkiye’s efforts to acquire U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets, Rubio reiterated that President Donald Trump supported a potential sale but acknowledged that existing U.S. legislation remained a significant obstacle.
He said restrictions tied to Türkiye’s acquisition of Russian S-400 air defense systems must be resolved before Washington could legally proceed with the transfer.
“The issue is the S-400 system,” Rubio said, adding that the matter remained unresolved despite possible diplomatic solutions.
Türkiye was removed from the multinational F-35 program in 2019 after acquiring Russia’s S-400 air defense system, prompting U.S. sanctions despite Ankara’s role as a production partner in the fighter jet program.
The U.S. and Greece announced $4 billion (TL 196.86 billion) in military sales under the Foreign Military Sales program to support Athens’ long-term defense plans, as the two countries pledged Wednesday to strengthen security and economic cooperation.
The announcement followed the sixth round of the U.S.-Greece Strategic Dialogue in Athens, co-chaired by Rubio and Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis, according to a joint statement released by the U.S. State Department.
Both sides said the sales would bolster Greece’s defense capabilities and improve military interoperability, while also pledging to explore further cooperation between their defense industries, particularly in emerging and innovative technologies.
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