Main political events in Türkiye in the last week.
Main political events in Türkiye in the last week.
Last week in Türkiye, the visit of Venezuela’s leader Delcy Rodríguez to Istanbul and her meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was the top in the national agenda.
Another topic of the week was the developments within the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) following the ruling of “absolute nullity”.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s tour of South Asia was also among the topics of the week.
Venezuela’s Interim President in Istanbul
On June 8, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan hosted Venezuela’s Interim President Delcy Rodríguez in Istanbul. Erdoğan and Rodríguez held a meeting at the Dolmabahçe Office that lasted approximately two hours.
The meeting was attended by Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar, Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır, and Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat.
The Venezuelan delegation included Foreign Minister Yván Gil, Minister of Tourism Daniela Cabello, Minister of Science and Technology Gabriela Jiménez, Minister of Transportation Jacqueline Farías, and Minister of Foreign Trade Johann Álvarez.
According to a statement released by the Republic of Türkiye Directorate of Communications, the talks covered the issues of reviewing the multifaceted relations between the two countries and further expanding cooperation, particularly in the areas of trade, energy, and mining. Erdoğan emphasized that Türkiye aims to increase bilateral trade volume to $3 billion.
Energy was a key topic during the talks. Reports indicated that Erdoğan and Rodríguez addressed joint projects in the fields of energy and natural gas.
Meanwhile, the Turkish and Venezuelan governments agreed to hold the 5th Meeting of the Joint Cooperation Commission in November in Venezuela’s capital, Caracas.
Rodríguez announced that Turkish companies would be invited to an international trade fair to be held in Caracas, adding that they aim to expand private-sector cooperation, particularly in areas such as construction contracting and logistics.
The meeting also resulted in an agreement to further develop bilateral ties in aviation and tourism.
In a video posted on her social media account, Rodríguez said: “We have successfully completed this international tour and are now returning to Venezuela. We thank President Erdoğan for this invitation.”
The absence of a joint statement following the meeting also drew attention.
Rodríguez’s visit became the first contact between Türkiye and Venezuela following the illegal abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the US.
“Absolute nullity” dispute continues within CHP
The turmoil within the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) continues following the ruling of “absolute nullity”.
On May 21, the Ankara Regional Court of Justice had ruled that the CHP’s congress held on November 4–5, 2023, was legally invalid. Following the decision, Özgür Özel was removed from the party leadership and replaced by former CHP Chairman Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu.
Özgür Özel and his supporters in the party initially had decided to resist the ruling in the party’s headquarters but the building had been evacuated by police intervention.
The court decision has triggered a deep split within the party.
Kılıçdaroğlu, who has once again become the chairman of the party following the ruling, announced in a post on X on June 8 that the party would take a new congress. Kılıçdaroğlu said:
“We are launching our congress process with the first meeting of our Party Assembly, which will be held on Thursday, June 11. (…) We are a great family enriched by our different views and united around the same goal. We are not rivals to one another; we are the children of the Republican People’s Party walking side by side…”
Meanwhile, a physical altercation broke out between supporters of Özgür Özel and Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu during a CHP parliamentary group meeting at the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye.
The dispute centered on which leader would preside over the party’s group meeting in parliament. In a statement on the issue, Özel said he had the support of 111 out of the party’s 138 MPs, announcing that he would deliver the main address. Özel described the meeting organized by Kılıçdaroğlu as an “unauthorized gathering”.
At the same time, the newly restructured High Disciplinary Board under Kılıçdaroğlu’s leadership held its first meeting. In the meeting, nine MPs were expelled from the party. These MPs are figures close to Özgür Özel.
Also, reports of various investigations and draft indictments concerning Özgür Özel and the MPs in his circle have appeared in the press.
Another significant development came when the Organized Crime Investigation Bureau of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office sent official requests to the Supreme Election Council (YSK), the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), and the Social Security Institution (SGK) seeking MASAK reports, bank transaction records, and SGK records of all delegates who voted at the CHP’s 38th Ordinary Congress, as well as their first-degree relatives.
The court ruling stated that some delegates’ voting preferences had allegedly been influenced through material benefits, job promises, offers of candidacy, and various other advantages. The ruling also noted that some delegates had been asked to photograph their ballots and send them in, constituting the secrecy of their votes.
President Erdoğan responded to allegations that the government was intervening in the CHP’ internal affairs by instrumentalizing law cases, saying: “We are observing these developments from a safe distance. Neither I nor the AK Party have any role whatsoever in the political and legal struggle surrounding the opposition party.”
Fidan’s South Asia visits
Another topic of the last week was Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s diplomatic tour of South Asian countries.
As part of Türkiye’s “Asia Anew Initiative,” Fidan visited Singapore, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and South Korea. He held a series of high-level diplomatic engagements.
His first stop was Singapore. Fidan was there on June 1–2.
Fidan met Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan, and Minister for Home Affairs and Coordinating Minister for National Security K. Shanmugam.
He also took part and delivered a speech titled “Türkiye’s Foreign Policy Vision: Diplomacy in an Age of Uncertainty” in the Raffles Lecture organized by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).
Here Fidan said that the world is currently experiencing a rare historical moment in which nearly every fault line of the international order is shifting simultaneously and “We are witnessing geopolitical turbulence that would normally unfold over decades being compressed into just a few years.”
Fidan described ASEAN as an “indispensable partner” and reiterated Türkiye’s intention to elevate its current Sectoral Dialogue Partnership status to a full Dialogue Partnership.
Referring to Türkiye’s “Asia Anew Initiative” launched in 2019, he emphasized that Türkiye’s engagement with Asia spans political dialogue, economic cooperation, and technology. He also underlined that Türkiye brings to this framework its institutional reach as a NATO member, its deep integration with European institutions, and its growing capabilities in the defense industry.
In a post on social media after the visit, Fidan said that his meetings with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Foreign Minister Balakrishnan, and Minister Shanmugam had covered a broad range of areas, including economy, trade, investment, defense industry, security, digital transformation, and connectivity.
Following Singapore, Fidan visited Indonesia. Here Fidan held meetings with senior officials, including President Prabowo Subianto.
The talks between the sides covered primarily trade and other areas of cooperation.
After the meetings, Fidan described the Indonesian leg of his visit on social media as highly productive, and added that they had conducted detailed discussions on projects aimed at achieving the $10 billion trade target.
Defense industry cooperation was also among the notable items on the agenda. The discussions covered Türkiye’s participation in Indonesia’s procurement programs, as well as joint development efforts in armored vehicles and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technologies.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto had previously stated that Indonesia was interested in joining Türkiye’s KAAN fighter jet and submarine projects.
Fidan’s next destination was South Korea, where he held both one-on-one and delegation-level meetings with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun.
The main focus of the talks was deepening the Strategic Partnership between the two countries through concrete projects. While both sides set new targets to further increase the trade volume, which reached $11.3 billion in 2025, they also agreed on expanding the scope of the Free Trade Agreement through an update and revision process.
Following the meetings, Fidan stated that relations between Türkiye and South Korea had gained significant momentum across all fields. He noted: “We discussed steps to advance our cooperation with our strategic partner South Korea across a wide spectrum, from trade and defense industry to energy and high technology.”
The two countries had previously cooperated on the Altay Main Battle Tank project. During the talks this time, the two countries discussed continuing this cooperation in the manufacture of UAVs and armed UAVs.
Reconstruction efforts were another important topic of the talks. The two countries agreed on the potential use of South Korea’s experience and financial capacity in the reconstruction of Ukraine, Syria, and Palestine. In this context, they decided to develop a framework that would enable Turkish and South Korean companies to jointly participate in post-conflict rebuilding projects.
Following his South Korea visit, Fidan proceeded to the final stop of his Asia-Pacific tour, Bangladesh.
He was received by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman.
The two sides signed a “Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the Field of Protection of Cultural Heritage.”
The two sides also reached consensus on expanding cooperation in education, trade, defense industry, agriculture, and tourism. The possibility of increasing direct flights to attract more tourists from Türkiye to Bangladesh was also discussed.
Also, Fidan visited the Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar. There, he reviewed humanitarian assistance activities carried out by the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA), AFAD, the Turkish Red Crescent, the Türkiye Diyanet Foundation, and the Ministry of Health.
Following the Rohingya camps, Turkish Foreign Minister visited the Türkiye-Bangladesh Friendship Hospital, receiving briefings on healthcare services. Meeting Turkish doctors and medical staff, Fidan spoke with Rohingya patients and listened to their concerns.
In remarks following the meetings, Fidan said: “We are taking determined steps to strengthen our fraternal ties with Bangladesh. The agreement we signed today is only the beginning of our cooperation.”