Obviously, democracy requires political parties to change their views in order to find a middle ground. Temporarily suppressing one’s real views to unite around “negative politics” (opposing everything) is not a healthy attitude for the culture of democracy.

Washington, which supports terrorist entities like FETÖ and the PKK, will undoubtedly face stronger criticism from all echelons of Turkish society.

Muharrem Ince, who was the main opposition Republican People’s Party’s (CHP) presidential candidate in 2018, resigned on Feb. 8, following in the footsteps of three other parliamentarians. His critique of the CHP leadership was strongly worded and comprehensive.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan created the framework for the 2023 elections by calling for a new and civilian constitution. The need for a civilian constitution dates back to the adoption of the 1982 Constitution, an embodiment of the authoritarianism of coup leaders, hence, the frequent discussions on constitutional reform over the last 39 years – and 19 constitutional amendments. Yet Turkey still has not managed to talk about its political problems at the constitutional level.

Leaders of Turkey’s major political parties are meeting more frequently, as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's "alliance" talks with the Felicity Party (SP) reinvigorated the opposition. There is an effort underway to keep relations warm between the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), the Good Party (IP), the SP, the Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA) and the Future Party (GP) over proposals of an “augmented parliamentary system.”

Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, the chairperson of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), regularly complains about Turkey’s “artificial” agenda, but that did not stop him from starting a polarizing war of words by referring to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as “the so-called president.” With voters unimpressed by his rants about the economy and coronavirus-related problems, the main opposition leader turned to verbally abusing Turkey’s president – the staple of his rhetoric.

llegations of a coup dominated Turkey’s political arena before the Muslim headscarf controversy could be put to bed. From a journalist’s dream of “a great natural disaster” to topple President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to a former military commander claiming that the 1960 coup could have been avoided if an early election had been called, to the attempted birth of an opposition movement over the appointment of Boğaziçi University’s new rector, Turkey is dealing with a range of fierce debates. All of these conflicts attest to the resilience of the idea of Kemalist tutelage, which simply refuses to respect popular will.

2020 was a difficult year for everyone. The two avalanches in the eastern province of Van and a major earthquake in the western province of Izmir aside, the COVID-19 pandemic altered our lives so remarkably that we could not adapt to the “new normal” – embodied by face masks and social distancing. We could not even mourn those who lost their lives. As the vaccine against the coronavirus becomes more widely available, we dream of reuniting with our friends and loved ones.

Hardly anyone in Turkey thought they would bid farewell to 2020 amid a fresh controversy surrounding the Islamic headscarf.

The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality hosted a controversial ceremony to commemorate the death of Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi, known as Şeb-i Arus, last week. Addressing the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AK Party) parliamentary meeting on Tuesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan described the recitation of the Quran and the call to prayer in Turkish at that event as "a return to the fascist practices of the 1940s." That practice, which violates the rules of the Mevlevi Order, serves as a reminder of the Turkification of religious rituals under the single-party regime.

Sharing similar concerns in the region, Ankara and Baghdad have opened a new page in cooperation, which is particularly bad news for PKK terrorists

Once again, Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, started a new debate over early elections. This time around, he urged Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Chairperson Devlet Bahçeli, whose movement is part of the pro-government People’s Alliance, to say “enough is enough” and lead the country to elections. Kılıçdaroğlu’s message was an obvious, yet timid, response to Bahçeli’s earlier call on the Good Party’s (IP) Meral Akşener to return home. Former Finance Minister Ali Babacan, who currently chairs the Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA), echoed the same sentiment, in a meeting with Kılıçdaroğlu and claimed that Turkey’s current system of government would not last until June 2023.

Turkey’s main opposition, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), has become embroiled in internal strife over the distinction between 'Mustafa Kemal' and 'Atatürk', in reference to the founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.

Western media’s opposition to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is possibly the world’s worst kept secret. Western commentators immediately jump to conclusions about the supposedly expansionist goals of Erdoğan’s Turkey whenever Ankara launches a fresh foreign policy initiative. Experts in Washington, Paris, Athens, Abu Dhabi and elsewhere make the same arguments in an attempt to contain Turkey’s influence to an unbearable extent. At the heart of those comments lies the claim that the Turkish president has isolated his country in the international arena, which will lead the nation to a disaster and that the Turkish people deserve better.

Greece continues to escalate tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean amid calls from the European Union for dialogue. In addition to conducting military exercises, Athens deployed troops to the island of Kastellorizo (Megisti-Meis) and is preparing to conclude an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) agreement with the Greek Cypriots – similar to Athens' controversial deal with Egypt. Last but not least, Greek leaders fueled tensions last week by talking about extending their claims in the Ionian Sea to 12 nautical miles.

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s plan to remove Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan from power went down in the history of Turkish-U.S. relations. The fact that he made that statement some eight months ago does not make the situation any less grave. After all, those controversial words were not uttered by an inexperienced presidential candidate with no idea about foreign policy. Biden, who was President Barack Obama’s vice president, unveiled a thought-out and clear policy on Turkey.

Turkey’s party politics cannot seem to lose momentum. Two new political movements have recently emerged out of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party). Now, the Republican People's Party (CHP), which just held its 37th Congress, faces the same possibility.