Politics
Türkiye’s growing influence in Europe disturbs Greece
Greece is increasingly disturbed by its historical archrival Türkiye’s growing influence in Europe and the EU’s ambitious plans to strengthen its security mechanism.
Although Türkiye and Greece pursue rapprochement in their formerly hostile relations, Athens also works to bolster its defenses by new acquisitions, while Türkiye’s flourishing defense industry raises its profile, especially with sales of uncrewed aerial vehicles (UCAVs) to other countries and boosting its military arsenal with locally-made products.
Ankara and Athens are particularly at odds on their maritime borders in the Aegean Sea, which has been the venue for dogfights between Turkish and Greek fighter jets in the past.
In an interview with the Greek daily “Naftemporiki” last Friday, Greece’s Defense Minister Nikos Dendias made pointed remarks about Türkiye’s pursuit to join the EU’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) program.
“The partners must decide what kind of Europe they want. No, Europe is without principles, values and respect for the rules of international law. It is also unthinkable that countries that threaten EU member states or do not recognize EU members should indiscriminately participate in the project of rearming Europe,” Dendias told Naftemporiki.
EU countries have adopted a regulation last month setting up SAFE, a new financial instrument designed to support member states that wish to invest in defense industrial production through common procurement, focusing on priority capabilities.
Under the approved part of the regulation, joint defense procurement of the bloc may include third countries not members of the EU, such as Türkiye.
Europe aims to reinforce its defenses as the United States reconsiders its generous support to the continent’s defense since World War II. Türkiye is eager to contribute to Europe’s security architecture, although the bloc stalled its accession for years.
Regarding Greek-Turkish relations, Dendias was also adamantly unoptimistic about the mutual push for rapprochement in the past two years.
“Regarding the ‘good atmosphere,’ I would like to underline that this narrative that Türkiye may be using cannot be considered credible,” he said, repeating a point he often raises to undermine what Ankara and Athens have called a “new phase” in historically strained ties.
The Greek defense chief further criticized Türkiye’s “Blue Homeland” doctrine, a maritime strategy introduced by Turkish naval officers in 2006 and later adopted by the government, calling it “revisionist.”
The doctrine aims to expand Türkiye’s control over surrounding waters and maritime resources, which has been a source of disputes with Greece in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean.
‘Barrack the Turkish agent’
Greek media, too, has added fuel to the fire, even accusing the U.S. Ambassador to Ankara, Thomas Barrack, of being a “Turkish agent” for “acting in favor of Türkiye.”
“The U.S.’ pro-Türkiye Ambassador Tom Barrack has officially become an agent for Türkiye. Instead of serving American strategic interests, he’s serving Turkish interests,” Greek magazine Hellas Journal wrote.
The journal said Barrack “secretly” traveled to Washington and met with President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Oval Office last Friday.
“I spent my afternoon with President Trump and Secretary of State Rubio at the White House. We discussed Middle East issues related to Türkiye and Syria. I can assure you that the President’s vision, with the Secretary’s implementation, is not only promising but also doable,” Barrack reportedly wrote on X following the meeting.
“We do not know exactly what Mr. Barrack meant, but according to diplomatic sources, it is certain that he advanced the Turkish agenda in the White House,” Hellas Journal said.
The journal claimed the U.S. ambassador is “racing against time to make President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s visit to Washington happen.”
According to Hellas Journal, Barrack is working to ensure Erdoğan returns from a trip to Washington with “many gifts,” most notably the lifting of sanctions under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) on the Turkish defense industry.
Touting Trump’s “more open, more constructive” approach, Erdoğan last month said he believes the CAATSA sanctions would soon be “overcome.”
Erdoğan said he had discussed the matter with Trump and Washington’s new ambassador to Ankara.
“With my friend Trump taking office, we reached a more open, more constructive, more sincere communication,” he said.
The move, if implemented, could see Türkiye purchase at least $20 billion in U.S. military equipment, which could increase Ankara’s naval capabilities, notably in the Aegean Sea.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met with Izmir Mayor Cemil Tugay, who resigned from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in June, at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on Wednesday.
“We informed the president about important issues on Izmir’s agenda and our projects for the city’s future,” Tugay noted in a written statement, thanking Erdoğan for the meeting and his interest in Izmir.
The meeting comes amid speculation over Tugay’s political future following his departure from the CHP.
Tugay resigned from the party on June 18 amid turmoil following a court ruling concerning the CHP leadership and said he would continue serving as Izmir mayor as an independent.
His departure left Türkiye’s third-largest city with a mayor who was not a CHP member for the first time in more than two decades.
Since his resignation, Turkish media reports have speculated that Tugay could join the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party).
AK Party Izmir lawmaker Mehmet Kasapoğlu, responding to the speculation, said the party would neither attempt to force political developments nor “close the door” on trends emerging naturally in politics.
Erdoğan’s meeting with Tugay follows a Sept. 9 meeting with Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş, who later announced his resignation from the CHP and said he would continue his political career as an independent.
Morning raids on Thursday netted Mersin Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Vahap Seçer, along with the mayors of the Yenişehir and Mezitli districts in the province.
Authorities announced that a total of 59 suspects were detained in an investigation into corruption in the municipalities.
Seçer, Yenişehir Mayor Abdullah Özyiğit and Mezitli Mayor Ahmet Serkan Tuncer are all members of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), whose new chair, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, has pledged to cleanse the party of corruption after taking office last May.
The investigation into Mersin municipality, a city of about 2 million people, found that violations of regulations in 13 public tenders and 63 acquisitions organized by the municipality resulted in a public loss of more than TL 330 million ($6.73 million). Suspects linked to Mezitli Municipality caused a public loss of more than TL 1.1 billion, investigators discovered, again through rigged public tenders and acquisitions, while the figure was TL 105 million at Yenişehir Municipality.
A similar scheme was discovered in most municipalities that faced investigations in the past two years, and almost all of them were run by CHP mayors. In other investigations, prosecutors have accused defendants, including mayors and senior municipal bureaucrats, of running criminal organizations that thrived on bribes in exchange for zoning and building permits, awarding lucrative tenders to businesspeople in exchange for advance payments in violation of tender laws and holding companies hostage over payments for their services, releasing the payments only after the companies paid additional money to the municipalities.
Authorities said Tuncer also faced a separate investigation over allegations that he ordered armed attacks on people with whom he was involved in a feud, as well as on a local office of the New Party (YP), which was founded last July by former CHP chair Özgür Özel, and the offices of a media company.
The CHP seeks to restore its image, tarnished by the arrest of mayors on corruption charges. As promised by Kılıçdaroğlu, the “cleansing process” will now involve preemptive steps to prevent future cases, according to a recent report by Sabah newspaper. Starting next year, the party will introduce a “performance monitoring system” for its mayors, which will serve as a benchmark to assess whether they comply with the CHP’s predetermined criteria.
With this move, the mayors’ past and future performance will come under scrutiny. They will be assessed based on how many criteria they have met, and at the end of the process, they will be given a “report card.”
The mayors will undergo reviews in a number of areas, including project management, financial management, human resources management and public relations. The flow of funds in municipalities, investments and the allocation of tenders are also expected to be examined comprehensively.
Mayors whose activities are deemed suspicious, who fail to meet the established criteria or are found to have performed poorly will not be nominated in the next election. Throughout the process, the main focus will be on clean politics and financial transparency.
All of the mayors who remain under the CHP umbrella are individuals who were nominated in the last local elections during Özgür Özel’s tenure as party chairperson. The party leadership also plans to hold a meeting of mayors shortly to strengthen central authority and discuss steps to be taken for the coming year.
Defense Minister Yaşar Güler attended the Distinguished Observer Day of the Unity of Strength-2026 military exercise in Azerbaijan on Thursday, alongside senior commanders from the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK).
The exercise, hosted by Azerbaijan with the participation of Türkiye and Uzbekistan, is aimed at improving coordination and joint operational capabilities among the three countries’ armed forces.
Güler visited the exercise area in Shusha with Chief of General Staff Gen. Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu, Navy Commander Adm. Ercüment Tatlıoğlu, Land Forces Commander Gen. Metin Tokel and Air Force Commander Gen. Rafet Dalkıran.
Güler and Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov also inspected weapons, ammunition and military technologies displayed and used during the exercise.
Türkiye’s Defense Ministry said Turkish and Azerbaijani air forces struck simulated ground targets on their first attempts during the drills. The ministry also said troops conducted urban warfare training as part of the exercise.
According to the ministry, participating units trained under challenging scenarios designed to improve coordination, speed and their ability to conduct joint operations.
More than 3,500 military personnel from Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have taken part in the joint exercises, which began Sept. 21, according to Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry, noting the drills marked the first military exercise of this scale to include territories retaken by Azerbaijan.
More than 130 unmanned aerial vehicles, 70 armored vehicles, 90 artillery systems and 20 aircraft are participating in the exercise, along with more than 30 electronic warfare, reconnaissance and surveillance systems. The drills also involve more than 15 air defense systems, eight sets of engineering equipment and more than 20 naval vessels, the ministry said.
The Kremlin said Wednesday that work was underway on the possible transfer of Türkiye’s Russian-made S-400 air defense systems to a third country, a move that could help address a longstanding dispute between Ankara and Washington over Türkiye’s participation in the F-35 fighter jet program.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the issue was “on the agenda” and that discussions were taking place.
“Relevant work is being done, and appropriate contacts are taking place,” Peskov noted when asked about the possibility of transferring the systems.
His comments came after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow could consider allowing the S-400 systems to be transferred to another country.
Lavrov said any recipient would need to act responsibly and maintain friendly relations with Russia, adding that Moscow would consider such a transfer if a request were made.
Türkiye agreed to purchase the S-400 air defense system from Russia in 2017 and acquired the system in 2019.
The acquisition drew criticism from the United States and other NATO allies, which argued that operating the Russian system posed risks to NATO defense systems and the F-35 program.
Washington subsequently removed Türkiye from the F-35 program and imposed sanctions under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
Ankara has long sought to resolve the dispute and return to the F-35 program. Yet, U.S. President Donald Trump said he was considering allowing Türkiye to rejoin the F-35 program at the NATO summit in Ankara in July.
Speaking alongside President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the Presidential Complex after arriving in Ankara for the summit, Trump said the time had come to remove sanctions that have strained relations between the two NATO allies.
“We’re going to lift the sanctions,” Trump said. “We don’t want to sanction our friends. I don’t want to choke my friend with sanctions.”
Calling Türkiye a militarily powerful country under Erdoğan’s leadership, Trump remarked that relations between Washington and Ankara were at their strongest point in years.
Yemen is seeking to expand cooperation with Türkiye to rebuild state institutions and improve essential public services as the war-torn country grapples with persistent security and humanitarian challenges, Foreign Minister Afrah al-Zouba said.
Al-Zouba made the remarks during a meeting with Türkiye’s Ambassador to Riyadh, Emrullah Işler, Yemen’s official SABA news agency reported.
The two officials discussed recent developments in Yemen and the wider region, as well as ways to strengthen bilateral relations and broaden cooperation.
Al-Zouba praised Türkiye’s support for Yemen and its internationally recognized government, including Ankara’s backing for the Presidential Leadership Council.
She stressed the importance of strengthening political and diplomatic coordination between Türkiye and Yemen amid regional and international developments, saying closer ties could support efforts to rebuild state institutions and bolster regional security and stability.
The Yemeni government is particularly interested in expanding cooperation with Türkiye in strengthening state institutions and improving basic services to help ease hardships facing the population, al-Zouba said.
The foreign minister also raised the impact of Houthi attacks on security in Yemen and the wider region, including threats to international trade and maritime traffic in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
She warned that indiscriminate missile launches by the Houthis posed growing risks to civil aviation and international air travel, saying weapons that fail to distinguish between civilian and military targets endanger passenger aircraft and civilian lives.
Işler, for his part, reiterated Türkiye’s support for the Yemeni government and for Yemen’s security, unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also reaffirmed Ankara’s commitment to expanding bilateral cooperation and supporting the Yemeni government’s efforts to rebuild state institutions and restore security and stability.
Türkiye’s National Security Council (MGK) on Wednesday called for an end to the U.S.-Israel-Iran war and a return to negotiations, warning that continued fighting risks creating a cycle of conflict with increasingly serious global consequences.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan chaired the council to discuss Türkiye’s national security priorities and a series of regional and international conflicts, according to a statement released by the Communications Directorate after the meeting.
Officials briefed the council on ongoing operations at home and abroad against threats to Türkiye’s national unity and security, particularly the PKK/KCK-PYD/YPG, Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) and Daesh terrorist organizations, as well as recent international developments.
The MGK also reviewed progress under the Terror-Free Türkiye and Terror-Free Region initiatives, reaffirming Ankara’s determination to continue efforts aimed at strengthening the security of Türkiye and the wider region.
The council said Türkiye would continue pursuing policies aimed at contributing to the peace, security and prosperity of neighboring countries.
Syria featured prominently in the discussions, with the council reviewing what it described as positive developments in strengthening the country’s unity and territorial integrity, extending state authority nationwide and advancing the integration process.
Türkiye will continue supporting the Syrian people as they rebuild their country and strengthen relations with the international community, the statement said.
The council also underlined the importance of stability in Iraq, describing peace and security in the neighboring country as critical to the wider region.
It welcomed the Iraqi government’s efforts to strengthen state sovereignty throughout the country and reaffirmed Türkiye’s commitment to advancing strategic cooperation with Baghdad.
Turning to the conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran, the MGK warned that continued hostilities were developing into a cycle of confrontation that was deepening existing regional vulnerabilities.
The council urged the parties to return to negotiations and end the conflict, warning that its global repercussions were becoming progressively more serious.
The MGK separately addressed developments in Gaza and Lebanon, saying Israel had continued its attacks without fulfilling its commitments and obligations toward establishing peace.
It called on the international community to take concrete action against Israeli policies that Türkiye says are obstructing regional stability, including violations of Syria’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.
The council also reviewed the latest developments in the Russia-Ukraine war, focusing particularly on attacks against civilian infrastructure and navigation routes and their regional and global repercussions.
Pointing to signs of uncontrolled escalation and the potential spread of the conflict, the MGK called on both sides to exercise restraint and pursue a cease-fire.
The meeting also addressed escalating tensions in Yemen, with the council warning that recent developments were increasing security risks across the region, particularly for neighboring countries.
It stressed that restoring calm in Yemen was also important for global stability and called for tensions to be brought under control without delay.
The MGK reiterated Türkiye’s determination to combat terrorism while pursuing regional diplomacy, stability and cooperation across neighboring countries and conflict zones.
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