Country profile · Europe and the Middle East
Turkey
Turkey lies in Europe and Asia and controls the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles, the only sea route between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. It joined NATO in 1952 and has 355,200 active troops, the second most in the alliance. It hosted 2.39 million refugees at the end of 2025, the third most in the world. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has led it since 2003.
Where Turkey ranks
All rankings →Who runs Turkey?
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was prime minister from 2003 to 2014 and has been president since 2014. No Turkish leader, including Atatürk, has held power longer. He grew up in Kasımpaşa, Istanbul, and sold simit, rings of sesame bread, on the street as a teenager. As mayor of Istanbul he spent about four months in prison in 1999 for reciting a poem. He won a runoff in May 2023 with 52.18%. He can run again only if parliament calls an early election, which needs 360 of 600 votes. His AKP and MHP alliance holds 326. His main rival, Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, has been jailed since March 2025. In July 2026, 91 opposition CHP lawmakers formed the New Party.
- AKP 280
- MHP 46
- Other parties and 8 vacant seats 274
Portrait (2025): The White House, public domain
Who are Turkey's allies and rivals?
Turkey hosted the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7 and 8, 2026. It bought Russia's S-400 air defense system in 2019. That led to US sanctions and removal from the F-35 program. President Trump promised to lift the sanctions in July 2026. They had not been lifted by September. On August 7, 2026, Turkey signed the Mecca defense pact with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Turkey's parliament has not ratified it. Azerbaijan has had a mutual assistance pact with Turkey since 2010. Turkey is the main foreign backer of Syria's post-Assad government. It halted all trade with Israel in May 2024. Its troops have held northern Cyprus since 1974.
Allies and partners
- NATOMember since 1952, hosted 2026 summit
AzerbaijanMutual assistance pact since 2010
Saudi ArabiaMecca defense pact, August 2026
PakistanMecca defense pact, August 2026
QatarTurkish troops based there since 2015
SyriaMain backer of post-Assad government
Tensions
IsraelAll trade halted since May 2024
GreeceAegean sea and airspace disputes
CyprusTurkish troops in north since 1974
ArmeniaBorder closed since 1993
- The straits The Bosphorus and Dardanelles. Closed to warships of both sides in the Ukraine war since February 2022.
- Aegean Sea Sea borders, airspace and continental shelf disputed by Greece and Turkey.
- Northern Cyprus Held by Turkish troops since 1974. Recognized only by Turkey.
- Turkey
- Partner
- Tensions
Who does Turkey trade with?
Turkey exported $273.4 billion of goods in 2025 and imported $365.4 billion, a deficit of $92.0 billion. Energy and gold account for about $67 billion of that gap. Turkey imports about 70% of its energy. Russia supplied 59.96% of its crude oil imports in 2025. In June 2026, the United States became the top crude supplier. Russian pipeline gas was 21.16 billion cubic meters in 2025, about 36% of gas imports. Vehicles were the largest export at $36.7 billion. Tourism brought a record $65.2 billion in 2025 from 52.8 million foreign visitors. Switzerland is among the top five suppliers mainly because of the gold it sells to Turkey.
Sells to
Share of Turkey's exports
Germany8.1%
United Kingdom6.1%
United States6.0%
Italy4.8%
Iraq4.5%
Buys from
Share of Turkey's imports
China13.6%
Russia11.6%- Germany8.2%
- United States4.9%
Switzerland4.3%
Goods trade, 2025. Shares of Turkey's exports and imports, from TurkStat, the Turkish Statistical Institute (January 2026). Imports from Switzerland are mostly gold.
How strong is Turkey's military?
SIPRI estimates Turkey spent $30.0 billion on its military in 2025, 18th in the world and 1.9% of GDP. The IISS counts 355,200 active troops, the second-largest force in NATO. Defense and aerospace exports reached $10.05 billion in 2025, 4.4 times the 2020 level. Baykar has export deals for its TB2 drone with 37 countries. Turkey signed for 20 new Eurofighter Typhoons from the United Kingdom in October 2025, with deliveries from 2030. In July 2026, President Erdoğan announced an extra $24 billion for the Steel Dome air defense network. Turkey has no nuclear weapons. The Federation of American Scientists estimates 20 to 30 US B61 bombs are stored at Incirlik air base.
Active troops in NATO's largest armies, 2026
Full ranking →- United States1,340,150
- Turkey355,200
France203,900- Germany179,850
Poland173,000- Italy160,400
- United Kingdom141,100
IISS, The Military Balance, 2024 to 2026 editions
How many refugees does Turkey host?
UNHCR counted 2,390,414 refugees in Turkey at the end of 2025, the third most in the world after Colombia and Germany. Most are Syrians under temporary protection. The number of Syrians peaked at 3,737,369 in 2021 and fell to 2,347,756 by the end of 2025. After Bashar al-Assad fell on December 8, 2024, about 710,000 Syrians returned from Turkey by July 2026. UNHCR counted about 640,000 by May 2026. Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftçi put the number still in Turkey at about 2.245 million on July 9, 2026. Turkey also hosts about 167,000 other refugees and asylum seekers, mostly from Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq.
Refugees hosted, end of 2025
Full ranking →
Colombia
Uganda
UNHCR Refugee Population Statistics Database