Where is Turkey Headed?

by Robert Olson The recent sacking of Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, coupled with recently passed parliamentary bills and laws, confirms that Turkey is headed for one-man dictatorial rule. This rule will not be similar to dictators or regimes that have… Continue Reading

Turkey, Russia: Ties Worsen Over Downed Turkish Helicopter

by Dorian Jones Kurdish rebels’ “game-changing” downing of a Turkish attack helicopter with a Russian-made missile could further intensify still simmering hostilities between Ankara and Moscow. Coming nearly six months after Turkish jets’ downing of a Russian bomber operating from… Continue Reading

Does Turkey See Its Armenian Minority as a Security Threat?

by Dorian Jones Members of the small ethnic Armenian community in Turkey are feeling increasingly uneasy. Their wariness is an outgrowth of recent claims by senior officials in Ankara that Kurdish rebels collaborate with Turkish Armenians, as well as the government’s… Continue Reading

Turkey’s Geopolitical Aims in Syria

by Robert Olson Turkey hopes to use the 2.7 million Syrian refugees now in Turkey as vehicles to develop and consolidate it geopolitical and geo-economic position. This is a vastly different policy from the one Ankara pursued toward Kurdish refugees… Continue Reading

Challenges to Kurdish Nationalism

by Robert Olson Several times during the last week of April, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed that the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK)— and its political arm, the Union of Kurdistan Communities (KCK)—had been defeated and that the state was winning.… Continue Reading