Hasan Kanbolat
Biography
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2014: The Year of the Rise of Salafism in and Around Turkey
It seems that 2014 will be the year when Salafism will rise in and around Turkey.
Like a bull in a china shop, Salafism will seek to redesign the ...
What's on Table in Second Geneva Summit?
The Geneva II Middle East peace conference, which will kick off on Jan. 22, 2014 in Montreux and resume in Geneva on Jan. 24, 2014, is a major...
Alevism: Where is it headed? What does it Want?
The 30th meeting of the Abant Platform, at which the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) now makes a traditional appearance, took place between...
Ankara Extends Full Support to Iraqi Turkmen
On the night of Dec. 6 I met with Erşad Salihi, Kirkuk deputy and leader of the Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITC), and the ITC's executive board members ...
Russia Moves Away from Legacy of Soviet Union
Factors such as the Sochi Winter Olympics, political success throughout the Middle East, the blockage of Ukraine and Moldova's respective moves...
Moscow does not Believe in Tears
In a joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin held in St. Petersburg on Nov. 22, after the fourth meeting of the High-Level...
Prime Minister Erdoğan's St. Petersburg Visit
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will pay an official visit to St. Petersburg on Nov. 21-22. Among the delegates to accompany Erdoğan will be En...
Azeri President Ilham Aliyev Set to Visit Turkey
Presidential elections took place in Azerbaijan on Oct. 9, with the coming five years of presidential rule decided in these elections.
In the wake ...
Prime Minister Erdoğan's Visits to Finland, Sweden, Poland
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will be paying official visits to Finland, Sweden and Poland from Nov. 5-6.
These three European countries have ...
A Boost for Turkish-Belarusian Ties: Makey Visits Ankara
Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makey will visit Ankara on Oct. 30 to attend the eighth term meeting of the Turkish-Belarusian Joint Economic...
Will the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics Ensure Security?
The Winter Olympics will be held in Sochi on Feb. 7-23 while the Winter Paralympics will be on March 7-16 in 2014.Sochi is located on the outskirts...
The New Member of the Customs Union: Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan is preparing to join the Russia-led Customs Union in early 2014. Armenia announced it will join the Customs Union as well.
The European ...
Presidential Elections to be Held in Azerbaijan
Presidential elections will be held in Azerbaijan on Oct. 9. The elections were moved to this date because of the Festival of the Sacrifice.
The ...
How Should We Read the Iraqi Kurdistan Parliamentary Elections?
The results from the Sept. 21, 2013 parliamentary elections of Iraqi Kurdistan have been announced. Though there were no real surprises in these...
Valdai: a Russian Wedding
Valdai is the most important discussion platform of the Russian Federation. The town of Valdai is located in the Novgorod Oblast between Moscow and...
Use of ‘Kurdistan' in Turkey (2)
Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in August 1990. The US intervened in Iraq in January 1991.
During this period, Kurds rioted in the north and the ...
Use of ‘Kurdistan' in Turkey (1)
The word “Kurd” has been a taboo up until recently in Turkey. Now we avoid using the notion “Kurdistan.”
Kurdish intellectuals, on the other hand, u...
Peeking Over the Syrian Border from Reyhanlı
Antakya kebab is made from a thin skewer of sheep meat. Interestingly, lamb cannot be used for kebabs.
In fact, lamb chops are the only thing to be ...
Towards a Series of Interventions in Syria
There are several goals for the probable intervention in Syria. First, to send a strong message to Syria indicating that chemical weapons should not...
Citizenship Reform for Syrian Refugees and Illegal Residents
Considering that the war in Syria will not end soon, it is time to develop new policies. Even if the war ends, the reconstruction of Syria will take...
Historic Importance of Gorran's Ankara Visit
Both the public and private sectors cooperate closely with the party in power and those who are close to them.
And in order to avoid criticisms and ...
First Festival in Reyhanlı
This was the first Ramadan celebration after the bombings of May 11. People paid their respects at the graves of those who died in the explosions and...
New Middle East: Administrable Chaos
Turkey is an economic and socio-cultural force in the Middle East. However, the Syrian war clearly shows that Turkey is not a military power in the...
Gezi Park, the CHP and the Sidelines
There have been many analyses suggesting that there would be a radical decline in the support for the Justice and Development (AK) Party after the...
Hatay Silk and the Winds of Sectarian Politics
Hatay is at the center of silk production in Turkey. While many people think of Bursa when silk is mentioned, the truth is that silk production in...
Egyptian Model: Has 'Moderate Islam' Failed in the Middle East?
With the Free Officers Coup in 1952, the military became an economic power in Egypt. This power was further consolidated during Anwar Sadat's...
Egypt: Old Turkey
Associate Professor Hasan Ali Karasar, from Bilkent University's international relations department, has said, "Those who sanctify the Arab...
Political Balances Changing in Favor of Kurds, Shiites in Iraq
Things are not going well in Iraq; the deal between Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Iraqi Kurdistan continues to change the political...
From Bishkek to Ankara: Gezi Park Reverberations
In the first days of the crisis, embassies were busy sending hourly messages back their nations, but as of the start of this week, these have evolved...
Political Analysis of Gezi Park Protests: What Will Be Their Impact on Election Outcomes?
The Gezi Park protests are no longer associated with environmental concerns. Rather, they now target the ruling party. Indeed, protesters have...
Let No One Else Die like the Syrians
The positive effects of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to Reyhanlı continue.
His sensible words in Reyhanlı calmed the fears of Syr...
The Significance of the Killing of Chechen Leader Ünlü
Ünlü used the title of honorary consul to Turkey from the Chechen Republic, which had declared its (unrecognized) independence in 1991 from Russia. O...
Russian-Circassian Relations from the Perspective of Russian-Turkish Rapprochement
May 21, 1864, is the symbolic date for the end of the Caucasian Wars and the forced relocation of 95 percent of the people in northwest Caucasia by...
Understanding Reyhanlı Via my Family
Reyhanlı is my homeland. I am the descendant of immigrants. The bombs which blasted through the town of Reyhanlı in the province of Hatay hit and h...
Afghanization of Syria; Pakistanization of the ME, Central Asia and EU
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan harshly criticized Bashar al-Assad because of the massacre in Baniyas in Syria. Baniyas is a city in the Tartus ...
Putin's Kyrgyzstan Visits
Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay two visits to Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, for two major summit meetings: in June for the summit...
Will the US Give Central Asia to Russia as a Gift?
The recent events in Boston clearly showed some of the changes in US foreign policy priorities, as well as in US perceptions of who the enemy is. For...
Impressions from Washington, D.C.
It is time for the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. In 1912, 3,000 cherry trees were sent from Tokyo to the US capital as gifts....
PM Erdoğan to Head off to Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia
Professor Ermanno Visintainer is a Turkologist and expert on the Turkish world. He is also the president of the Italian think tank Centro Studi “Vox P...
Moscow-backed Iranian plan announced in Damascus
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has delivered his first public speech since November.
His speech at the opera house in Damascus was broadcast live...
2014: The Year of the Rise of Salafism in and Around Turkey
It seems that 2014 will be the year when Salafism will rise in and around Turkey. Like a bull in a china shop, Salafism will seek to redesign the ...
What's on Table in Second Geneva Summit?
The Geneva II Middle East peace conference, which will kick off on Jan. 22, 2014 in Montreux and resume in Geneva on Jan. 24, 2014, is a major...
Alevism: Where is it headed? What does it Want?
The 30th meeting of the Abant Platform, at which the Journalists and Writers Foundation (GYV) now makes a traditional appearance, took place between...
Ankara Extends Full Support to Iraqi Turkmen
On the night of Dec. 6 I met with Erşad Salihi, Kirkuk deputy and leader of the Iraqi Turkmen Front (ITC), and the ITC's executive board members ...
Russia Moves Away from Legacy of Soviet Union
Factors such as the Sochi Winter Olympics, political success throughout the Middle East, the blockage of Ukraine and Moldova's respective moves...
Moscow does not Believe in Tears
In a joint press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin held in St. Petersburg on Nov. 22, after the fourth meeting of the High-Level...
Prime Minister Erdoğan's St. Petersburg Visit
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will pay an official visit to St. Petersburg on Nov. 21-22. Among the delegates to accompany Erdoğan will be En...
Azeri President Ilham Aliyev Set to Visit Turkey
Presidential elections took place in Azerbaijan on Oct. 9, with the coming five years of presidential rule decided in these elections. In the wake ...
Prime Minister Erdoğan's Visits to Finland, Sweden, Poland
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will be paying official visits to Finland, Sweden and Poland from Nov. 5-6. These three European countries have ...
A Boost for Turkish-Belarusian Ties: Makey Visits Ankara
Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makey will visit Ankara on Oct. 30 to attend the eighth term meeting of the Turkish-Belarusian Joint Economic...
Will the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics Ensure Security?
The Winter Olympics will be held in Sochi on Feb. 7-23 while the Winter Paralympics will be on March 7-16 in 2014.Sochi is located on the outskirts...
The New Member of the Customs Union: Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan is preparing to join the Russia-led Customs Union in early 2014. Armenia announced it will join the Customs Union as well. The European ...
Presidential Elections to be Held in Azerbaijan
Presidential elections will be held in Azerbaijan on Oct. 9. The elections were moved to this date because of the Festival of the Sacrifice. The ...
How Should We Read the Iraqi Kurdistan Parliamentary Elections?
The results from the Sept. 21, 2013 parliamentary elections of Iraqi Kurdistan have been announced. Though there were no real surprises in these...
Valdai: a Russian Wedding
Valdai is the most important discussion platform of the Russian Federation. The town of Valdai is located in the Novgorod Oblast between Moscow and...
Use of ‘Kurdistan' in Turkey (2)
Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in August 1990. The US intervened in Iraq in January 1991. During this period, Kurds rioted in the north and the ...
Use of ‘Kurdistan' in Turkey (1)
The word “Kurd” has been a taboo up until recently in Turkey. Now we avoid using the notion “Kurdistan.” Kurdish intellectuals, on the other hand, u...
Peeking Over the Syrian Border from Reyhanlı
Antakya kebab is made from a thin skewer of sheep meat. Interestingly, lamb cannot be used for kebabs. In fact, lamb chops are the only thing to be ...
Towards a Series of Interventions in Syria
There are several goals for the probable intervention in Syria. First, to send a strong message to Syria indicating that chemical weapons should not...
Citizenship Reform for Syrian Refugees and Illegal Residents
Considering that the war in Syria will not end soon, it is time to develop new policies. Even if the war ends, the reconstruction of Syria will take...
Historic Importance of Gorran's Ankara Visit
Both the public and private sectors cooperate closely with the party in power and those who are close to them. And in order to avoid criticisms and ...
First Festival in Reyhanlı
This was the first Ramadan celebration after the bombings of May 11. People paid their respects at the graves of those who died in the explosions and...
New Middle East: Administrable Chaos
Turkey is an economic and socio-cultural force in the Middle East. However, the Syrian war clearly shows that Turkey is not a military power in the...
Gezi Park, the CHP and the Sidelines
There have been many analyses suggesting that there would be a radical decline in the support for the Justice and Development (AK) Party after the...
Hatay Silk and the Winds of Sectarian Politics
Hatay is at the center of silk production in Turkey. While many people think of Bursa when silk is mentioned, the truth is that silk production in...
Egyptian Model: Has 'Moderate Islam' Failed in the Middle East?
With the Free Officers Coup in 1952, the military became an economic power in Egypt. This power was further consolidated during Anwar Sadat's...
Egypt: Old Turkey
Associate Professor Hasan Ali Karasar, from Bilkent University's international relations department, has said, "Those who sanctify the Arab...
Political Balances Changing in Favor of Kurds, Shiites in Iraq
Things are not going well in Iraq; the deal between Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Iraqi Kurdistan continues to change the political...
From Bishkek to Ankara: Gezi Park Reverberations
In the first days of the crisis, embassies were busy sending hourly messages back their nations, but as of the start of this week, these have evolved...
Political Analysis of Gezi Park Protests: What Will Be Their Impact on Election Outcomes?
The Gezi Park protests are no longer associated with environmental concerns. Rather, they now target the ruling party. Indeed, protesters have...
Let No One Else Die like the Syrians
The positive effects of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to Reyhanlı continue. His sensible words in Reyhanlı calmed the fears of Syr...
The Significance of the Killing of Chechen Leader Ünlü
Ünlü used the title of honorary consul to Turkey from the Chechen Republic, which had declared its (unrecognized) independence in 1991 from Russia. O...
Russian-Circassian Relations from the Perspective of Russian-Turkish Rapprochement
May 21, 1864, is the symbolic date for the end of the Caucasian Wars and the forced relocation of 95 percent of the people in northwest Caucasia by...
Understanding Reyhanlı Via my Family
Reyhanlı is my homeland. I am the descendant of immigrants. The bombs which blasted through the town of Reyhanlı in the province of Hatay hit and h...
Afghanization of Syria; Pakistanization of the ME, Central Asia and EU
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan harshly criticized Bashar al-Assad because of the massacre in Baniyas in Syria. Baniyas is a city in the Tartus ...
Putin's Kyrgyzstan Visits
Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay two visits to Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, for two major summit meetings: in June for the summit...
Will the US Give Central Asia to Russia as a Gift?
The recent events in Boston clearly showed some of the changes in US foreign policy priorities, as well as in US perceptions of who the enemy is. For...
Impressions from Washington, D.C.
It is time for the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. In 1912, 3,000 cherry trees were sent from Tokyo to the US capital as gifts....
PM Erdoğan to Head off to Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia
Professor Ermanno Visintainer is a Turkologist and expert on the Turkish world. He is also the president of the Italian think tank Centro Studi “Vox P...
