Turkey in January 2026: the most important developments in politics
In Turkey in January 2026, the most reported political development was Turkey's place on the US-led Board of Peace for Gaza. Around 16 January President Trump reportedly invited President Erdogan to join as a co-founder, and a US official said Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu had not been told that Qatari and Turkish representatives would sit on the panel. On 19 January Netanyahu said publicly that Israel and the United States disagreed over the inclusion of Turkey and Qatar. Erdogan said Turkey was coordinating with the US on Gaza and spoke with Trump by phone on 5 and 21 January. On 27 January Hamas met Turkish officials to discuss the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire.
Iran was the second theme. Erdogan said he hoped the unrest in Iran would be resolved through diplomacy and that Turkey opposed foreign intervention there. On 28 January Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said it would be wrong to start war again, cautioned against a possible US attack on Iran and urged the United States to begin nuclear negotiations with Tehran. Turkey, Oman and Qatar were reported to be trying to mediate between Washington and Tehran. Iran's foreign minister, Araghchi, held talks in Ankara and Istanbul on 30 January, including with Erdogan, and Erdogan reportedly proposed a trilateral summit with the United States to Trump. Turkish officials also claimed that Israel was pressing the US to strike Iran.
On Syria, Erdogan welcomed the ceasefire between the Syrian government and Kurdish-led forces, told Syrian leader al-Sharaa that Turkish support would continue, and said the full removal of terrorism was vital. Erdogan also discussed Venezuela with Trump on 5 January, saying it must not become unstable. Turkey was reported to be in advanced talks to join a Saudi-Pakistan mutual defense pact. Parliament's agenda was topped by pension reforms and authorization of military deployments overseas, and Turkey and Uzbekistan announced joint strategic meetings in Ankara.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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