Politics
Erdoğan-Putin talk, SCO ties on agenda as president visits Bishkek
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan departed for Kyrgyzstan on Monday to attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), where he is expected to hold talks with world leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Erdoğan traveled to Bishkek at the invitation of Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov for a two-day visit. First lady Emine Erdoğan and a Turkish delegation accompanied him.
The Turkish president is scheduled to address an expanded-format session of the summit on Tuesday and hold a series of bilateral meetings on the sidelines.
Türkiye in recent years signaled an interest in deepening its ties with the organization. Erdoğan has previously raised the prospect of Türkiye eventually seeking full membership, a move that would make the NATO member the first country in the Western military alliance to join the SCO.
The Bishkek summit is expected to focus on international and regional security, economic cooperation and efforts to strengthen the organization, according to Kyrgyz authorities.
Leaders are expected to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war, instability in the Middle East and security risks related to Afghanistan, as well as cooperation against terrorism, separatism, transnational organized crime and drug trafficking.
Economic cooperation will also feature prominently, including efforts to increase the use of national currencies in trade and plans for an SCO development bank.
One of Erdoğan’s key meetings on the sidelines will be with Putin on Sept. 1.
Russian presidential foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov confirmed the meeting. “There are many issues to discuss; of course, these include the situation in the Black Sea and the Ukraine issue in general,” Ushakov told reporters.
The two leaders are also expected to discuss bilateral trade and economic cooperation.
Türkiye has sought to maintain diplomatic channels with both Moscow and Kyiv since the start of the Russia-Ukraine war and has repeatedly offered to facilitate negotiations aimed at ending the conflict. Istanbul has previously hosted several rounds of negotiations between Russian and Ukrainian delegations.
Erdoğan and Putin are also expected to discuss regional developments, including Syria, as well as energy and economic ties. Türkiye and Russia cooperate on several major energy projects, including the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, while Ankara has also pursued plans to establish a natural gas trading hub.
According to Ushakov, Putin plans to hold nine bilateral meetings during the summit, including talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The summit, chaired by Japarov at the Yntymak Ordo state complex in Bishkek, is expected to conclude with the adoption of a declaration marking the SCO’s 25th anniversary and decisions aimed at expanding cooperation in politics, trade, transportation, logistics, digitalization and environmental issues.
An expanded “SCO ” meeting will also focus on strengthening international law, supporting sustainable development and promoting mutually beneficial cooperation.
Shanghai Cooperation Organization
Türkiye joined the SCO as a Dialogue Partner in 2013 and was granted the chairmanship of the international body’s energy club for one year in 2016. Ankara has previously expressed its desire for full membership in the SCO.
The SCO traces its roots to the “Shanghai Five” mechanism – China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan – before Uzbekistan joined as the sixth member. Today, the organization includes 10 member states, two observers, and 14 dialogue partners across Asia, Europe, and Africa.
It covers about 24% of the world’s land area and 42% of the global population. Member states account for roughly one quarter of global GDP, with total trade increasing nearly 100-fold in the past two decades. Their share of world trade rose from 5.4% in 2001 to 17.5% in 2020.
Türkiye is working to broker a new agreement between Russia and Ukraine to restore safer grain shipments through the Black Sea, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Monday, warning that escalating attacks in the region are threatening both maritime security and global food supplies.
Speaking to journalists in Istanbul, Fidan said Ankara remained in contact with both Moscow and Kyiv and was seeking to establish conditions for an arrangement similar to the previous Black Sea grain initiative.
“We have prepared a proposal and are in contact with both sides,” Fidan said. “As we did in the past, we hope to work toward an agreement similar to the grain deal if the necessary conditions emerge.”
Fidan described deteriorating navigation security in the Black Sea as a major concern extending far beyond the countries directly involved in the Russia-Ukraine war.
“This continues to be a serious problem,” he said, adding that disruptions preventing Russian and Ukrainian grain from reaching international markets were increasingly affecting global food security.
Türkiye has received appeals from several countries concerned about the disruption of grain supplies, Fidan said.
Russia and Ukraine are among the world’s major wheat exporters, making uninterrupted Black Sea shipping particularly important for countries heavily dependent on imported grain. Prolonged disruptions could drive up prices and exacerbate food shortages, particularly in vulnerable countries in Africa and elsewhere.
Fidan also warned that the continuing war had become increasingly destructive as both sides developed new methods of targeting each other, leaving fewer areas and assets beyond the conflict’s reach.
“The parties are constantly developing new methods, to the point where almost nothing remains outside the scope of targeting,” he said, warning that the conflict was evolving from a war of attrition into an increasingly destructive confrontation.
He said Türkiye was continuing diplomatic efforts aimed at preventing further escalation.
Ankara previously played a central role in brokering the Black Sea Grain Initiative alongside the United Nations in 2022. The agreement enabled Ukrainian agricultural exports to reach international markets through designated Black Sea routes before Russia withdrew from the arrangement in 2023.
Renewed concerns over Black Sea navigation have intensified amid attacks on vessels and maritime infrastructure. Fidan called for restraint, warning that further escalation could deepen risks to commercial shipping and food supplies.
The issue is also expected to feature in talks between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Kyrgyzstan on Tuesday.
Ukraine has backed efforts toward a renewed Black Sea cease-fire, while Russia has resisted recent proposals, arguing that revenue generated by Ukrainian exports could ultimately support Kyiv’s military campaign.
Türkiye, which maintains diplomatic channels with both Moscow and Kyiv, has repeatedly sought to mediate between the two sides while pushing for measures to safeguard commercial navigation and agricultural exports through the Black Sea.
New Party (YP) Chairperson Özgür Özel defended his vote in favor of legislation underpinning Türkiye’s terror-free initiative, saying a party that advocates resolving long-standing issues through Parliament could not oppose such a measure in the legislature.
Speaking in a live interview with broadcaster Halk TV on Monday, Özel said he personally took responsibility for voting in favor of the Law on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integration, while allowing his party’s lawmakers to vote according to their own judgment.
“A party that says these issues should be resolved in Parliament cannot oppose the law in Parliament. I voted ‘yes’ on principle, taking full responsibility,” Özel noted.
He said the party could not oppose, on principle, a process in which a terrorist group declares its dissolution and abandons armed violence.
Özel acknowledged differing sensitivities among voters across Türkiye, pointing to concerns in the Black Sea, Thrace, Central Anatolia and western regions.
Türkiye’s Parliament earlier this month passed a landmark 12-article law supporting the country’s “Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative, following months of political efforts led by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Chairperson Devlet Bahçeli.
The legislation outlines legal procedures for members of the PKK terrorist group who lay down their arms and surrender to Turkish authorities as the organization moves toward dissolution and disarmament. It includes provisions allowing the deferral of prosecution or prison sentences in certain circumstances, while establishing different legal procedures depending on an individual’s position within the organization and involvement in criminal activity.
The law does not constitute a general amnesty and does not eliminate existing convictions, change the legal classification of crimes or broadly remove criminal liability, according to the justification accompanying the legislation.
On the other hand, ahead of the parliamentary vote, Özel said he consulted 91 New Party lawmakers, 74 provincial chairs and seven former provincial officials in provinces without sitting chairs.
“There was no absolute ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ I said I would represent the party’s principled position and we would leave the rest to individual choice,” he said.
Özel remarked that subsequent feedback from lawmakers, opinion polls and social media monitoring had reinforced his belief that allowing a free vote was the right decision.
Turning to domestic political alliances, Özel stated that parties should work independently until elections approach rather than determining alliances years in advance, saying that strategy was a mistake in the previous election.
Asked whether New Party could form an alliance with the Republican People’s Party (CHP) if a leader elected through a party vote took office, Özel left the door open.
“Anything is possible. Anyone elected in the CHP or another party is welcome,” he said.
Özel also noted that the New Party (YP) had reached 600,000 members since its establishment and predicted membership would rise to 1 million in a short period.
He also addressed remarks by CHP politician Muharrem İnce, who recently said “forming a party is not like making pickles” and that establishing one with legitimate funding was difficult.
Özel said he was initially offended by the remarks but accepted İnce’s subsequent explanation that he was referring to difficulties he experienced while establishing the Memleket Party.
“I believe an old friend does not become an enemy,” Özel added.
The breakaway between the two parties follows months of internal turmoil within the CHP after Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu returned to the party leadership following a court ruling that invalidated the previous party congress, a decision widely referred to in Turkish political circles as the “absolute nullity” ruling.
The number of irregular migrants intercepted at sea in Türkiye fell 53% in the first eight months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to Coast Guard Command data, as authorities intensified efforts against irregular migration and migrant smuggling.
Coast guard teams intercepted 5,984 irregular migrants in 256 incidents through Aug. 30 this year, compared with 12,857 migrants in 494 incidents during the same period of 2025.
The number of incidents fell 48% year-over-year.
The figures also showed a broader decline since 2024. Authorities recorded 2,011 irregular migration incidents involving 55,726 migrants in 2024, while 20,078 migrants were intercepted in 767 incidents in 2025.
August recorded the highest monthly number of interceptions this year, with 988 irregular migrants apprehended at sea, followed by June with 942 and July with 902.
The coast guard, which operates around the clock to prevent unauthorized sea crossings and combat migrant smuggling, carries out patrols and surveillance using maritime and aerial assets.
Despite the decline in crossings, dangerous journeys continued to claim lives. Forty-six irregular migrants died at sea through Aug. 30 this year, according to the data. Türkiye recorded 44 deaths in 2024 and 59 in 2025.
Authorities also detained 143 suspected migrant smugglers in maritime operations through August this year, compared with 484 in 2024 and 363 in 2025.
Coast guard operations have also extended to land in coordination with police and gendarmerie units in an effort to prevent migrants from reaching the sea.
In 141 joint operations through Aug. 30, authorities intercepted 3,153 irregular migrants before they could set out to sea and detained 221 suspected migrant smugglers. August recorded the highest number of land interceptions, with 744 migrants apprehended.
The coast guard also continues search-and-rescue operations for people in distress at sea using boats, ships and aircraft.
A new police operation in the southern province of Antalya has revealed that Muhittin Böcek, former mayor of the Mediterranean city for the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), was allegedly involved in a sex-for-hire scheme. Seven suspects have been detained as part of the investigation.
Böcek, who is already jailed on corruption charges, reportedly sought to have sex with 11 young women who were promised jobs at municipality-run companies by Böcek’s subordinates.
Turkish media outlets reported that testimonies from the alleged victims indicated that Böcek was accused of having group sex and sexual relationships with two sisters and underage girls.
Several people were already arrested in an earlier operation on allegations of prostitution linked to the municipality. Among them was T.G., the director of a youth center run by the municipality. T.G. and four others are accused of organizing the scheme.
Böcek was arrested in 2025 on bribery charges. In an apparent bid for leniency in sentencing, he cooperated with authorities and recently admitted to paying 5 million euros ($5.5 million) to Ekrem İmamoğlu, another former mayor charged with corruption, in exchange for securing a CHP candidacy in the municipal elections.
He told investigators that he had a deal with İmamoğlu, an influential figure in the CHP, to pay 15 million euros in exchange for securing the CHP candidacy for Antalya in the previous elections.
Türkiye and Syria have completed construction of a floating bridge across the Euphrates River as part of growing cooperation between the two countries’ armed forces, Turkish and Syrian officials said on Sunday.
In a post on social media platform X, Türkiye’s Ambassador to Syria Nuh Yılmaz said that the bridge, connecting the two banks of the Euphrates in Syria, was completed on Aug. 30, Türkiye’s Victory Day.
Yılmaz said the bridge was built jointly by the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and the Syrian army to replace a previous bridge destroyed by flooding.
He said the project marked the second bridge constructed through cooperation between the Turkish and Syrian militaries.
“The Turkish and Syrian armed forces are building the future together in peace as well,” Yılmaz said.
Syrian Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra said separately on X that the bridge was constructed to ease transportation difficulties for residents of the eastern province of Deir el-Zour.
Abu Qasra also thanked Turkish Defense Minister Yaşar Güler for his efforts to strengthen trust and cooperation between the two countries.
“I extend my sincere thanks to my brother, Turkish Defense Minister Gen. Yaşar Güler, for his intensive efforts in strengthening trust and cooperation between our countries,” Abu Qasra noted.
Nuh Yılmaz, Türkiye’s ambassador to Damascus, previously said that relations between Türkiye and Syria are developing rapidly in line with the political will expressed by the two countries’ presidents, adding that the necessary legal framework is also being established.
Ankara was the main backer of the opposition forces that overthrew Assad and has since pledged to help Syria’s reconstruction and economic revival.
Commercial ties between Türkiye and Syria gained momentum after the ouster of longtime dictator Bashar Assad in late 2024. Bilateral trade with Syria reached $3.75 billion in 2025, up 42% year-to-year. The two neighbors are aiming to reach a $10 billion trade volume in the near future.
Top officials from the countries party to the historic Mecca Joint Defense Agreement convened in Istanbul on Monday on the occasion of the first meeting of the Strategic, Political and Defense Committee established to advance the deal. An army of journalists, including Daily Sabah managing editor Batuhan Takış, covered the key meeting highly anticipated by friends and foes of Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
Speaking after the meeting, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said they decided to name the alliance the Mecca Defense Alliance. He said the first secretary-general of the alliance would be a Pakistani official and the secretariat’s offices would be based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He emphasized that the alliance would “reduce uncertainty and instability” in the region.
Along with Fidan, the meeting was attended by Türkiye’s National Defense Minister Yaşar Güler and Chief of the General Staff General Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Federal Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif, and Chief of the Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan, Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman, and Chief of the General Staff General Fayyadh bin Hamed Al Ruwaili.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the “Joint Defense Agreement” in Mecca on Aug. 7.
“We took a historic step in Mecca under the leadership of our President. The agreement is a product of the principle of regional ownership. As we have always stated, attempts to impose solutions on our region from outside do not provide remedies to our problems, on the contrary, they can lead to the payment of a heavy price. It has become an urgent necessity for the countries of the region to act together for security, stability, prosperity, and lasting peace, and to give an institutional character to the steps they take in this direction. With this agreement, the process of establishing a new security and cooperation architecture in our region has thus begun,” Fidan said in a news conference following the meeting.
He stated that the alliance will seek to establish a security architecture. In response to questions, he said they were open to expansion, underlining that its main purpose was to include more countries. He said that the alliance would reduce uncertainty, instability in the region and they hoped that it would be key to peace. Turkish officials have earlier stated that they were open to expanding the alliance to include other countries, particularly Egypt.
“We held a comprehensive exchange of views on the concrete steps we will take in the implementation of the agreement. As of today, we have also begun work on establishing the institutional structure envisaged by the agreement. First and foremost, we reached an agreement on the official name of our alliance. The official name of our alliance is the Mecca Defense Alliance. As you know, the Mecca Defense Alliance Agreement envisaged the establishment of a secretariat. It was decided that this secretariat would be established in Riyadh. There had also been a general agreement that the first Secretary-General would be a Pakistani colleague. In the discussions we held today, we reached preliminary decisions on the steps to be taken from this point forward, including which steps would be taken and when in order to institutionalize the alliance. Our brothers expressed their views during the meeting with a great deal of harmony and depth. I once again wish that the decisions taken here will be auspicious and beneficial, and I would like to extend my sincere thanks in advance to everyone who has contributed to the efforts to institutionalize the alliance,” Fidan added.
“Signed with our vision of a secure, stable, and prosperous future, this alliance is defense-oriented. The alliance is based on principles of international law, including respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states and non-interference in their internal affairs. We would like to emphasize once again here that the alliance is not directed against any state, on the contrary, it is open to all states in our region that abide by these fundamental principles. It is our shared aspiration to advance the peaceful vision put forward by the Mecca Defense Alliance together with other friendly countries that share the principles at the heart of the agreement,” he said.
As the news of the alliance circulated, speculation was rife that it was squarely aimed at deterring Iran amid the U.S.-Iran war that spilled into U.S. allies in the region. The three countries rejected this but underlined that an attack on one country party to the agreement would be deemed as an attack on all.
Fidan also clarified that the alliance did not contradict Türkiye’s membership of NATO. “It does not eliminate or replace Türkiye’s obligations arising from NATO, in particular, or from its other alliances and agreements. Rather, it is complementary to all of them,” he said.
“With today’s inaugural meeting of the Strategic Political and Defense Committee of the Mecca Defense Alliance, we have demonstrated that we are ready to assume responsibility for regional peace, security, and stability. We will continue to ensure close cooperation and coordination with friendly countries, particularly Pakistan and Saudi Arabia,” he stated.
In response to a question, Fidan slammed the Israeli administration, singling out Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “This murderer should be stopped. He is the common enemy of humanity,” he said.
“From the moment the electoral process began (in Israel), there has been an increasingly hostile rhetoric toward Türkiye from the Netanyahu government, including Netanyahu himself and his supporters, as well as approaches targeting our President and some of our colleagues. We have been following this from the very beginning.
“Netanyahu, the murderer and perpetrator of genocide, is not a person who should be taken seriously. He has become a common enemy of humanity, the international community, and global security. The principal party Netanyahu is accountable to is the international community and the international system. Because Netanyahu, his mentality, and the genocidal group acting alongside him constitute a threat not only to Türkiye but to global security as a whole. It would be a major mistake to think of this as merely Türkiye’s problem. Therefore, the international community must fulfill the responsibility it has failed to fulfill until now and stop this murderer, this perpetrator of genocide.
“It is now necessary to prevent this perpetrator of genocide from causing further harm to the region, to Israel, to the Jewish people, and to the entire world. In other words, this murderer, who takes pleasure in spilling Palestinian and Muslim blood, must now be stopped.
“The continuation of this situation is also causing great harm to Israel, while it is already causing immense harm to the Palestinians and the region. When you look at his statements, he does not want a Palestinian state to be established, nor does he want the ongoing occupation of countries in the region to come to an end. He wants the continuation of a genocidal and expansionist approach that threatens regional and international security,” he said.
-
Sports2 days agoGalatasaray complete Rafael Leao signing from Serie A’s AC Milan
-
Politics3 days agoMuslim unity key to countering Israeli threat, President Erdoğan says
-
Politics2 days agoFM Hakan Fidan holds calls with Qatari, Egyptian counterparts
-
Sports2 days agoSole Çalhanoğlu strike secures narrow Inter win over Cagliari
-
Politics3 days agoTürkiye rejects legal impact of Greek spatial plan in Aegean
-
Sports2 days agoMourinho tips Mbappe for Ballon d’Or despite lack of major trophies
-
Economy1 day agoUS says world ‘cannot have China with $1.2 trillion trade surplus’
-
Politics2 days agoAnkara summons Ukraine’s ambassador over Black Sea attacks