We expected backlash when Ramadan-themed programs hit public schools this year. We didn’t expect this dance video.
In this week’s recap:
Turkey’s airspace violated again, NATO boosts defenses
Calculations on Kurdish ground forces
Istanbul municipality corruption trial underway
Domestic and diplomatic wraps
Anti-war Sánchez sparks Turkey-Spain meme flood
Also from us:
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Ezgi Başaran discussed how the Iran war impacts the Turkey-PKK peace talks on Recap radio
“S-400” was trending on social media in Ankara this morning, meaning it’s high time for air defense systems — as South Korea found out this week.
And while it may never be the right time to test the Russian-made missiles that caused a rift between Turkey and its allies, the Iran war has confirmed the Daft Punk maxim: Turkey is NATO after all.
What happened: NATO defense systems were deployed and strengthened in Turkey this week as the Iran war continues and a second missile was intercepted in approach of Turkish airspace Monday.
Some debris landed in Gaziantep without injury or damage, according to Turkey’s Defense Ministry. Falling fragments were also reported in Diyarbakır, also without injury, though with less details.
Like the first incident on March 4, this week’s missile may have targeted assets used by NATO forces in Turkey, namely the Incirlik air base in Adana and the Kürecik radar station in Malatya.
In response, NATO deployed a Patriot missile interceptor system in Malatya, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced Tuesday, following a NATO spox Allison Hart statement on X reading: “NATO stands firm in its readiness to defend all Allies against any threat.”
Prior to Monday’s missile incident, the US State Department ordered non-emergency US government employees and their family members to leave the Adana Consulate “out of an abundance of caution.”
Reactions: Turkish FM Fidan, who has worked to deescalate the conflict through diplomatic contacts with Iran, said the airspace violation was “unacceptable” in a phone call with Iranian FM Abbas Araghchi Monday.
For his part, Araghchi denied the missiles directed at Turkey airspace originated from Iran and said he would investigate the issue, according to Anadolu Agency.
Speaking to AKP lawmakers Wednesday, Pres. Erdoğan said Ankara continued efforts to reach diplomatic solutions through contact with Iran, the US and regional nations.
“This war must be stopped before it escalates and completely engulfs the region in flames,” Erdoğan said. “If diplomacy is given a chance, it is quite possible to achieve this.”
Analysis: Gönül Tol, director of the Turkey program at the Middle East Institute, outlined four major concerns for Ankara in her latest analysis of the Iran conflict. Speaking to Turkey recap Wednesday, she said Turkish officials expect the war to “drag on for months” despite US Pres. Trump’s statements suggesting the end is near.
Tol said her sources in Ankara believe the attacks may create a “more belligerent, more militaristic regime” in Iran and that neither the US nor Israel have “achieved their aims in the war.”
The outcome is a “belt of chaos stretching from Syria to Afghanistan,” the sources said, which Tol characterized as a “grave danger and threat if you’re sitting in Ankara.”
Asked how Turkey’s government might be calibrating to fast-paced developments in its neighborhood, Tol responded: “I think they are banking on the prospect that Trump’s and Netanyahu’s goals might diverge.”
She added the mid-term question remains whether Israel can sustain the war without the current level of US involvement, stating there is potential for a protracted, low-intensity conflict across the region.
“All it takes is for Iran or Iranian proxies to just launch a drone or missile to disrupt traffic in the Strait of Hormuz. So, even a low-intensity conflict is going to be problematic,” Told said.
The Kurdish quest qualm: Calculations on Kurdish ground forces
