Turkey

On July 26, 2007, Soner Cagaptay testified before the U.S. Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (the Helsinki Commission). The following is a transcript of his remarks. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and the commission for inviting me to appear at this very timely and important hearing on Turkey after

In the wake of a May 2007 presidential election crisis and subsequent political stalemate -- punctuated by massive public rallies and intervention by both the judiciary and the military -- Turkey called for early parliamentary elections to be held in July 2007. The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which

On June 19, the Turkish Supreme Elections Board, an independent body that monitors the elections process, finalized the candidate lists for the July 22 early parliamentary polls. The outcome at the polls should be easier to estimate now that the electorate can judge the parties as well as their candidates

On June 8, a day after reports that Turkish troops had crossed into northern Iraq to pursue members of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), Iranian aircraft bombed the camps of the Party of Free Life of Kurdistan (PJAK), also in northern Iraq. PJAK, which operates in the mountains of northern

On May 20, thousands of secular Turks demonstrated in the Black Sea port city of Samsun against the governing Justice and Development Party (AKP), which has an Islamist pedigree. It was the most recent display of protest in a power struggle between the AKP and its opponents over determining a

On April 30, 2007, the Turkish stock market slumped and the value of the lira dropped following a massive demonstration in Istanbul against the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government, coupled with a statement by the military voicing support for secularism. Previously, the comparatively healthy Turkish economy had boosted the

Turkish translation also available. Download a PDF (1.1 MB) In 2007, two crucial political developments will unfold in Turkey: the AKP-controlled parliament will select a new president, and the public will vote in nationwide legislative elections. Both events come at a time when Turkish popular sentiment toward the West has

Financial Times Deutschland published this op-ed by Soner Cagaptay and Mark Dubowitz in German. Read this op-ed in English. Anfang Februar hat Belgiens Polizei Riza Altun verhaftet, den Europachef der Arbeiterpartei Kurdistans, PKK. Französische Behörden gingen gegen das PKK-Finanznetzwerk in Paris vor. Die PKK hat seit 2004 über 1500 Menschen

U.S.-Turkish relations, already battered since the Iraq war, face a new challenge this spring: the "Armenian genocide" resolution. This resolution, introduced Jan. 30 in the House of Representatives, will likely come to the floor soon. If passed in the House, the resolution would sever the bilateral ties between Washington and