Middle Orient

After a close first-round result, what are the prospects for the forthcoming run-off vote and for Turkish democracy as a whole? On 14 May, 85% of Turkish voters turned out to vote for the president and national parliament of the country. Thankfully, no major incident occurred, and the electoral system …

The Head of the Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (ICCIMA) has stressed the need for establishing a joint Islamic market among the members of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) over the next 10 years, the ICCIMA portal reported on Thursday. Addressing a gathering of the heads …

Far-right candidate Sinan Ogan’s endorsement remains particularly critical for President Erdogan’s rival, with merely nine days to go until the presidential election runoff. Political traffic in Turkey heated up on Friday, as both President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his top rival, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, courted the country’s far-right electoral alliance ahead …

The leaders of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt publicly praised Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s participation in the summit after Syria was readmitted to the Arab League. Arab leaders gathered in the Saudi city of Jeddah on Friday for the annual Arab League summit. Many of them welcomed Syria’s participation, which …

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the favorite to win Turkey’s hotly contested runoff election that will have implications for its relationship with Washington. Turkish voters will return to the polls later this month in a heated runoff election that will be watched closely by the United States. The Biden administration …

Robert Ford, the last US ambassador to Syria, said the Jeddah summit will likely end with “nice promises” in front of the cameras but a different outcome in reality as normalization with Assad, overriding sanctions and the return of refugees face mounting hurdles. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad landed in Saudi …

The ‘springtime’ predicted by the opposition did not arrive in Turkey’s May 14 elections – and in the May 28 presidential run-off, the odds are stacked against them. “Spring will come again” was the motto of the opposition’s presidential candidate, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu. But Turkey’s twin elections on May 14 for …

Saudi Arabia on Wednesday officially took over the rotating presidency of the Arab League summit from Algeria as Syria’s attendance at the meeting was welcomed after years of isolation. Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf handed over the presidency to the Kingdom’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan during a meeting …

Iran and Russia agreed to build a railway between two Iranian cities as they continue to develop their trade relations despite US sanctions. Iran and Russia signed a major railway agreement on Wednesday. The deal is part of the International North–South Transport Corridor the two countries are developing with India …

The extension came as Erdogan prepares to face his rival in the presidential runoff election on May 28. Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Wednesday that the Black Sea deal that allows Ukraine, the world’s top grain supplier, to export to world markets would continue. The extension grants Turkish strongman …