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Turkey

Turkey, officially the Republic of Turkey, is located partially in the continent of Asia and partially in Europe. It shares borders with Greece and Bulgaria to the Northwest, Iran to the east and Iraq to the southeast. It also shares various borders with Syria, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia.

70%-75% of Turkey's population are Turks, and 19% are Kurds, making them the country's largest minority group. The country's capital is Ankara, and the largest city and financial city is Istanbul.

As of November 2021, the President of Turkey is Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who has served in this position since 2014. Prior to that, he served as Prime Minister of the country from 2003-2014. 

Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, an estimated 3.6 million Syrian refugees have taken up residence in Turkey, most of them living with temporary residence permits. 

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Kurds carry banners as they protest, in the northeastern city of Qamishli, against Turkish airstrikes on the headquarters of the Kurdish fighters from the People's Protection Units (YPG) in Mount Karachok on Tuesday, Syria April 26, 2017.

Syrian Kurdish groups on the back foot as power balance shifts

By REUTERS
 Top rebel commander Abu Mohammed al-Golani speaks to a crowd at Ummayad Mosque in Damascus, after Syrian rebels announced that they have ousted President Bashar al-Assad, Syria December 8, 2024.

Letting bygones be bygones: Behind the US diplomat's trip to Syria

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan meets with European Commision President Ursula von der Leyen in Ankara this week. Just six months ago, Erdogan vowed: 'Just as we entered Karabakh and Libya, we will do the same in Israel,' the writer notes.

Israel’s got a new neighbor: Turkey's taking over Syria

By David Ben-Basat
A burnt vehicle is pictured after, what medical and security sources say, was targeted by a Turkish drone strike in the village of Tal Shaeer, Syria June 20, 2023.

Two journalists killed in Syria, pro-Kurdish party in Turkey says

By REUTERS
 Members of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) after US-backed alliance led by Syrian Kurdish fighters captured Deir el-Zor, in Syria December 7, 2024

Syrian Kurdish commander: Non-Syrian Kurdish fighters to leave if total truce agreed with Turkey

By REUTERS
 Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi gives a briefing on the sidelines of a UN event in Lisbon, Portugal, November 27, 2024.

Iran seeks to bolster economic ties as it meets with Turkey and Egypt

 The Church of Saint Peter, Hatay, Turkey.

Unexpected find: Artifacts and tombs uncovered in Turkish construction project

 Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar (left) and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (left), (illustrative).

Israel, Turkey trade barbs over Syrian occupation

  Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (left), Turkish Intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin (center), and interim Syrian Prime Minister Muhammad al-Bashir (right) (illustrative).

New Syrian transitional government meets with European, UN officials

Turkish soldiers stand at the Cilvegozu border gate to cross into Syria. December 10, 2024.

Turkish invasion into Syria 'could be imminent,' US fears

 A rebel fighter sits on the back of a vehicle in Homs countryside, after Syrian rebels pressed on in  their lightning advance on Saturday.

Turkey ready to offer military training to Syria if new administration requests, minister says

By REUTERS
 Fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) attend a joint military exercise with forces of the US in the countryside of the town of al-Malikiya (Derik in Kurdish) in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province on September 7, 2022.

Turkey moves to isolate the Kurds in Syria, and prepares a way for new attacks

 US Secretary of State Antony Blinken boards a US Air Force aircraft after his meetings in the Turkish capital Ankara on December 13, 2024.

Blinken, in Turkey, discusses Islamic State in Syria, Gaza ceasefire

 Antony Blinken and Hakan Fidan in Ankara

Turkey, US discuss possible roles in Syria's future, foreign minister says

By REUTERS
 SYRIANS LIVING in Istanbul hold a picture of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as they celebrate after Syrian rebels ousted president Bashar al-Assad in Syria, on Sunday.

Having outplayed Russia and outsmarted Iran, Turkey is reinvented from Syria revolution

 Syrian rebels behind Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, ex-Syrian president Bashar al-Assad (illustration).

Turkey recalibrates its Syria strategy amid Assad’s fall

By Giorgia Valente/The Media Line
 TURKISH PRESIDENT Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro last month. The writer asks: Could Erdogan leverage a friendly regime in Syria to position troops and weapons on Israel’s border?

Could Erdogan leverage Syria’s rebel victory to threaten Israel?

By NOA LAZIMI
 TURKEY’S PRESIDENT Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani attend a signing ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Ankara last month. The new Turkish offensives could position Ankara as a more dominant player in Syria, the writer suggests.

Hezbollah weakened: Ripple effects reshape Middle East geopolitics

By LOQMAN RADPEY