Politics
Turkish FM says Erdoğan-Trump ties could help ease NATO divisions
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump could help ease differences within NATO as alliance leaders gather in Ankara this week for a summit focused on security, defense spending and transatlantic cooperation.
In an interview with The New York Times ahead of the July 7-8 NATO summit, Fidan said Türkiye hopes to use the close ties between Erdoğan and Trump to promote unity within the alliance.
“The relationship between President Erdoğan and President Trump can help reduce tensions within NATO,” Fidan noted, describing the relationship as one based on mutual trust and friendship.
He said Türkiye intends to use that relationship “for a greater good and for the benefit of the entire NATO family.”
Addressing Trump’s past criticism of NATO, Fidan said he expected technical discussions at the Ankara summit to proceed smoothly despite political disagreements.
“I don’t see any problems in that regard,” he remarked, adding that although allies often exchange strong rhetoric, little has changed in practical terms.
Fidan also stressed that Türkiye shares a common understanding with its European allies on NATO’s importance, saying the alliance remains indispensable to European security.
“No one is questioning NATO’s necessity,” he said.
While noting that the European Union is expanding defense cooperation, Fidan argued that such efforts should complement rather than replace NATO. He said Türkiye and European countries should continue to view one another as essential partners in their collective security.
“We are also part of Europe,” Fidan said. “Unless we come together in Europe and build our common security platform, we will never feel sufficiently secure.”
On regional issues, Fidan welcomed recent diplomatic progress between the United States and Iran, saying both sides appeared committed to reaching their long-term objectives, while noting that key issues including Iran’s nuclear program, sanctions relief and navigation through the Strait of Hormuz remain subject to further negotiations.
Fidan also reiterated Türkiye’s readiness to host new peace talks between Russia and Ukraine but said he did not expect negotiations to resume in the near term, emphasizing that meaningful progress would require continued U.S. involvement and a genuine commitment to peace from both sides.
Turkish security forces detained 48 suspected migrant smugglers in operations across 23 provinces, the Interior Ministry announced Monday, as authorities intensified efforts against irregular migration and organized smuggling networks.
Thirty-one of the suspects were formally arrested following judicial proceedings, while 17 were released under judicial supervision, the ministry said in a statement.
The operations were coordinated by the Gendarmerie General Command’s Department of Combating Migrant Smuggling and Human Trafficking and the Turkish Coast Guard Command.
Raids and enforcement operations were carried out in the provinces of Ağrı, Ankara, Aydın, Balıkesir, Bitlis, Çanakkale, Düzce, Edirne, Erzurum, Hatay, Izmir, Kırklareli, Kocaeli, Konya, Manisa, Muğla, Siirt, Sivas, Şanlıurfa, Şırnak, Tekirdağ, Tunceli and Van.
Authorities used both aerial and ground surveillance during the operations. Unmanned aerial vehicles operated by the Gendarmerie General Command conducted surveillance from the air, while provincial gendarmerie units carried out operations on the ground.
Public security, highway patrol and commando units also participated, while Coast Guard personnel supported coordinated operations targeting maritime smuggling routes.
Security forces seized 83 vehicles and 18 boats and boat engines believed to have been used in migrant smuggling activities, the ministry said.
All 48 suspects detained during the operations were subjected to judicial proceedings.
Türkiye has stepped up operations targeting networks accused of facilitating irregular migration, particularly in provinces along its land and maritime borders and along major transit routes.
The Interior Ministry said authorities would continue operations against irregular migration and migrant smuggling networks to protect public order and national security.
The ministry said its approach to combating irregular migration would continue to prioritize human rights while maintaining public order and safeguarding the country’s national interests.
It also thanked personnel from the Gendarmerie, Coast Guard and migrant smuggling and human trafficking units involved in the operations.
Separately, in the central Turkish province of Nevşehir, a suspect accused of transporting four irregular migrants and agreeing to take them from Sivas to Nevşehir for TL 50,000 ($1,040) per person was formally arrested by a court.
As part of a joint operation against migrant smuggling by the Nevşehir Provincial Police Department’s Intelligence Branch and the Department of Combating Migrant Smuggling and Border Gates, police placed the suspect, identified as Hüseyin Ö., under surveillance.
Authorities determined during questioning that Hüseyin Ö. had agreed to transport the four irregular migrants from Sivas to Nevşehir for TL 50,000 per person.
The suspect was detained and referred to a courthouse after procedures at the police station. A court subsequently ordered his arrest and he was sent to prison.
Deportation proceedings have been initiated for the four illegal migrants.
On Saturday, the Turkish Coast Guard also rescued 37 irregular migrants, including three children, from a rubber boat off the coast of Didim in the western province of Aydın after they were pushed back into Turkish territorial waters by Greek authorities.
Coast Guard boats were dispatched after receiving information about a group of irregular migrants aboard a rubber boat off Didim.
The Coast Guard rescued all 37 migrants from the vessel.
A Turkish financial crimes report has detailed on Monday extensive property transactions, multimillion-lira bank transfers and vehicle purchases involving the family and close associates of Alihan Kuriş, the alleged leader of a criminal organization under investigation by Ankara prosecutors.
The report by Türkiye’s Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), dated Aug. 20, was prepared as part of an investigation by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office into alleged laundering of criminal proceeds, fraud causing losses to public institutions and violations of the Tax Procedure Law.
Prosecutors requested an examination of changes in the wealth and assets of Kuriş and his relatives since Jan. 1, 2016.
MASAK examined assets, bank transactions, vehicles, company partnerships and property transfers involving Kuriş, his wife, parents, brother and grandmother, as well as his wife’s parents and sibling.
According to the report, land registry records showed a combined 1,818 property transactions involving four family members.
Kuriş’s mother, identified by the initials A.G.D.K., had 646 property transaction records, while his late grandmother, N.K., had 539. His father, M.S.K., had 207 transactions, while his father-in-law, M.K., had 426.
The transactions involving Kuriş’s mother covered a wide range of properties, including homes, offices, shops, workshops, restaurants, agricultural land and plots. Some were acquired through inheritance or transfers from relatives, while other properties were subsequently transferred to third parties or companies, according to the report.
MASAK found 27 properties registered to Kuriş’s father, 21 of which carried annotations or seizure orders.
The properties included apartments, plots, agricultural land, office and commercial premises and several multistory buildings. One property carried 38 enforcement liens and 72 public liens as well as multiple mortgage records, the report said.
Records also showed transfers involving Kuriş, his brother Hilmi Tuna Kuriş and their mother following their father’s death.
Property transactions involving Hilmi Tuna Kuriş intensified between 2024 and 2026, according to the report.
MASAK also said his banking transfers reached tens of millions of Turkish liras. Some properties linked to him were subject to enforcement liens, precautionary measures and two separate seizure orders.
The report also highlighted a transaction involving Kuriş’s wife, who had no real estate registered in her name but owned two vehicles.
On Sept. 5, 2023, TL 2.4 million (around $50,000) was transferred to his wife’s account by a third party, Mehmet Özmen. Almost the entire amount was transferred the same day to an automotive company, according to MASAK.
Investigators are examining why Özmen financed the vehicle and whether there was a legal or commercial relationship between the parties.
MASAK records also showed two luxury vehicles from the 2023 and 2024 model years registered to A.N.B.
Investigators are examining the source of funds behind the property purchases, vehicles, company interests and increased banking activity as part of the broader probe into Kuriş and his alleged organization.
Alihan Kuriş, the de facto leader of a group known publicly as “Süleymancılar,” was arrested last week along with other suspects.
The group originated as a religious movement named after 20th-century Islamic scholar Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, Kuriş’s great-grandfather.
Initially operating through informal religious instruction in homes and mosques, the group later expanded across Türkiye through Quran courses and student dormitories, largely financed by membership contributions and donations. Over time, its activities expanded into commercial sectors including food, health care, tourism, textiles, construction and real estate.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva discussed bilateral relations and regional and global developments in a phone call, Türkiye’s Communications Directorate said Monday.
Erdoğan welcomed the continued development of relations between Türkiye and Brazil, saying ties that were elevated to an advanced level two decades ago have continued to strengthen.
The Turkish president said deepening cooperation in a broad range of areas, particularly investment, trade and the defense industry, would benefit both countries, according to the statement.
Erdoğan also emphasized the potential for stronger economic ties between Ankara and Brasilia amid growing protectionist tendencies in the global economy.
He said he believed Türkiye and Brazil could develop a model of economic cooperation that would increase the prosperity of both countries while countering protectionist trends.
The two leaders also discussed regional and global issues.
Erdoğan said Türkiye and Brazil’s policies prioritizing peace in addressing regional and international challenges contributed to global peace.
Türkiye and Brazil have sought to expand bilateral economic and political relations in recent years while also cooperating through multilateral platforms on international issues.
As Israel’s expansionist policies threaten the stability of the wider region, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu further stokes the fire. Netanyahu is currently running his election campaign on anti-Türkiye rhetoric after being forced under U.S. pressure to stop attacks on Iran and Lebanon.
The prime minister, whose name has been linked to corruption allegations and whose party has fallen in public opinion polls, has long sought to avoid prison. He became the first sitting Israeli prime minister to stand trial for corruption. The architect of the genocide in the Gaza Strip, who is responsible for the deaths of more than 73,000 Palestinians (most of them women and children), has been criticized even in Israel for “setting the region on fire to protect his seat.”
Netanyahu’s Likud party is currently the largest party in Israel’s 120-seat parliament with 32 seats. But opinion polls for elections scheduled for Oct. 27 show Likud falling from 32 seats to 23 and becoming the second-largest party. Polls also show Likud and Netanyahu’s far-right and ultra-Orthodox coalition partners falling far below the 61 seats needed to form a government. A poll published by Israel’s Channel 13 on Aug. 19 showed Netanyahu and his coalition partners winning a total of only 51 seats.
Amid these developments, Netanyahu and his team turned to anti-Türkiye rhetoric. The signals came weeks before Israel’s Aug. 18 attack on the inactive Abu al-Duhur military air base in Syria’s Idlib province.
Amichai Chikli, a Likud lawmaker and diaspora minister, claimed in a radio interview in June that Israel would “sooner or later enter a war with Syria.” “Türkiye and Syria are far more disturbing developments than Iran,” Chikli said. Chikli, who often draws attention with anti-Türkiye posts, also voiced unease over the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement signed by Türkiye, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan. He said Saudi Arabia’s move to act with Türkiye was a “very bad development” for Israel.
Defense Minister Yisrael Katz, one of Netanyahu’s closest figures, has also emerged as a leading figure using anti-Türkiye rhetoric against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in the election campaign. Katz frequently targets Türkiye and Erdoğan on social media, and many of his posts are written in Turkish.
Eli Cohen, a Likud lawmaker and energy minister, also signaled last month that anti-Türkiye rhetoric would be used in the campaign. “If Türkiye establishes a base in Syria, we will establish one too,” Cohen told a local radio station.
Some opposition leaders and analyses published in Israel agree that Netanyahu and people close to him have turned the attack in Syria into an election campaign tactic by using anti-Türkiye rhetoric. Democrats party leader Yair Golan said Netanyahu made an “arrogant and dangerous” move with the attack. Golan said Israel “raised tensions with Türkiye and deepened the rift with the U.S.,” stressing that Netanyahu used military force for political calculations and that Tel Aviv paid the price in security terms.
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak said Netanyahu was pursuing a policy of reaching voters through security tensions ahead of the Oct. 27 elections.
Israeli political commentator Esther Solomon said in an analysis published in Haaretz newspaper that Netanyahu had failed to get the poll results he wanted “despite all his efforts” before the elections. Solomon said Netanyahu was trying to gain more votes by using every front to “overwhelm, surprise, and wear down the opposition” to build momentum for his party before the elections.
Another political commentator, Jonathan Lis, said in Haaretz that political considerations also played a role in Netanyahu’s decision-making process alongside security and diplomatic parameters. “As Israel’s October elections approach, it is highly suspicious that Netanyahu would want an escalation of tensions with Türkiye and Syria, especially as the Trump administration encourages calm between the parties,” Lis said.
The election campaign built on anti-Türkiye rhetoric in Israel is not limited to statements by Netanyahu and figures close to him. Channel 14 television, known for its closeness to Netanyahu, targeted Türkiye’s Consulate General in occupied East Jerusalem, which represents Palestine. A Channel 14 report claimed “unauthorized renovation” was being carried out in the building housing Türkiye’s Consulate General in Jerusalem. The report said the Israeli-affiliated Jerusalem Municipality was not allowed to inspect the site and broadcast exterior footage of the consulate building.
In addition, i24 television aired a documentary claiming Türkiye was trying to take control of East Jerusalem by focusing on the activities of Turkish institutions and associations in the city. The documentary gave broad coverage to humanitarian aid provided by Turkish institutions and associations to Palestinians in the city and also included the activities of the Yunus Emre Cultural Center in East Jerusalem.
A new Likud billboard in Tel Aviv features Erdoğan alongside Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem, and New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani under the message, “They want Netanyahu to lose. Don’t let them win.”
‘Cheap politics’
Netanyahu is seeking to portray Türkiye as a new threat as part of “cheap politics” aimed at gaining an electoral advantage, Türkiye’s Communications Directorate said Friday, warning that Israel’s increasingly aggressive rhetoric poses serious risks to regional and global stability.
The directorate strongly rejected recent remarks by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office concerning Erdoğan, describing them as an “impertinent rant” devoid of historical facts and political seriousness, and another sign of the desperation of an administration seeking to evade accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
It said the “cheap politics” pursued by Netanyahu and his associates, which it said was also designed to secure an advantage in elections, has no resonance in Israeli society, the region, the international community, or Türkiye.
The directorate said the remarks by an Israeli government facing genocide accusations before international justice mechanisms were a telling demonstration of how deeply Türkiye’s voice and Erdoğan’s refusal to remain silent in the face of injustice have unsettled the Netanyahu administration.
It also warned that Israel’s election campaign has increasingly fallen under the influence of irresponsible security-driven populism and an intensifying politics of threats. “The Netanyahu government’s effort to construct Türkiye as a new threat figure is also part of this cheap politics,” the directorate said.
It warned that pursuing a politics of threats and escalating tensions for the sake of domestic political competition carries serious risks not only for Israeli society but also for regional and global peace and stability.
Türkiye will continue, as it has in the past, to stand against oppressors and alongside the oppressed, and firmly defend peace, justice, and stability in the region regardless of the cost, the directorate said.
Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz will chair the first meeting of the “Board of Monitoring and Assessment” on Monday, established within the framework of the Law on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Cohesion. The law and the board are the culmination of a monthslong process called terror-free Türkiye, which aims for the disarmament of the terrorist group PKK. The PKK succumbed to calls for dissolution in 2025 after years of violence, and its members are expected to surrender to authorities after the new law was introduced earlier this month. The law is applicable only after verification of the PKK’s full disarmament, which is currently monitored by authorities.
The board has the ministers of justice, foreign affairs, interior, and national defense among its members, along with the presidency’s secretary-general, the intelligence chief, and the secretary-general of the National Security Board (NSB).
Turkish media outlets reported that the first meeting will focus on the establishment of lower boards that will address different aspects of the initiative. The first one to be established will be tasked with coordinating the handover of weapons possessed by the PKK and on-site verification mechanisms to that extent. Most PKK members are holed up in northern Iraq, in a mountainous territory where the group apparently has a complex cave system used as a hideout. The lower board will discuss and determine where and when the weapons will be handed over to authorities. A separate lower board will be tasked with judicial proceedings for PKK members who turn themselves in, and this board will receive input from judicial members in charge of the initiative. According to media reports, this board will also be tasked with classifying the legal files of each PKK member and determining how they can benefit from the new law.
The law includes 12 articles and offers exemption from prosecution for PKK members for a limited time, but only if they are not involved in acts of terrorism and other grave offenses. The deferrals will remain at the discretion of judges, however.
A separate board is scheduled to be created for the social integration and rehabilitation of PKK members who volunteer to return to Türkiye. Experts from the Ministry of Family and Social Services and the Ministry of Health will support this board. Another working board will be responsible for registering PKK members applying for deferrals.
The board led by Yılmaz will regularly brief parliament on its work, while parliament will establish a Monitoring Committee responsible for the next stage of the initiative.
Steps to be taken are contingent upon the publication of an NSB decision confirming that the PKK has laid down its arms. The law includes a stay of prosecution and deferral of sentence execution for PKK members who apply within six months.
The law includes temporary provisions regarding crimes committed within the scope of or in favor of the activities of the PKK and its affiliates. Investigations, prosecutions, and the execution of finalized sentences may be deferred for five or 10 years, depending on the nature of the crime and the severity of the sentence, under the new law.
Intentional homicide committed within the scope of organizational activity, as well as offenses committed before June 1, 2005, that require life imprisonment or aggravated life imprisonment, will be excluded. Consequently, PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan will not be eligible for these provisions. Those who have committed the crime of “intentional homicide” will also remain outside the scope.
Terror-free Türkiye will be on the agenda of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan when he visits eastern Türkiye this week on the occasion of the anniversary of a Seljuk battle that cemented Turkish rule in the country 955 years ago. Erdoğan and Devlet Bahçeli, head of the government’s ally, the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), who is credited with launching the terror-free Türkiye initiative, have been a staple of events in the towns of Ahlat and Malazgirt (the latter being the site of the Battle of Manzikert between the Seljuk army and the Byzantine army). Erdoğan is also expected to chair a meeting of his Cabinet in Ahlat. Since 2024, the two men have devoted their keynote speeches there to the initiative. Erdoğan highlighted a “common homeland and common future” in his 2024 speech, and his 2025 message at the celebrations focused on the lasting coexistence of Turks, Kurds, and Arabs in the region. Erdoğan and Bahçeli promote the initiative as something that unifies Turks and Kurds. The PKK started out as a self-styled Kurdish movement and claimed to fight for Kurdish rights and a “Kurdistan” state in eastern Türkiye, where both Ahlat and Malazgirt are located.
Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu aspires to cement his place in the Republican People’s Party (CHP), which was downgraded from its main opposition status. The former chair, who was reinstated to the post last May by a court verdict, will convene the central administrative board and party assembly on Wednesday, focusing on a road map for the future of the party. The CHP fell behind in the number of parliamentary seats after Kılıçdaroğlu’s predecessor, Özgür Özel, founded the New Party (YP) with lawmakers transferred from the CHP.
The Central Administrative Board meeting will discuss a timetable for the party’s next convention and set the dates for provincial and district congresses, ahead of the September launch of the process leading up to the next election. Kılıçdaroğlu is so far uncontested, as Özel, who repeatedly called on him to hold an extraordinary congress, gave up and went on to establish the YP.
In the meantime, Kılıçdaroğlu pursues redemption and reckoning. At the party assembly meeting, the CHP will discuss increasing the number of provincial and district board members and pardoning some members facing disciplinary proceedings or expulsion, according to a report by Anadolu Agency (AA). Kılıçdaroğlu has pledged to “cleanse” the party of corruption linked to mayors and other top figures and has launched an expulsion process for many loyalists of Özel who were entangled in corruption investigations.
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