Abdul El-Sayed defies $60 Million campaign against him, wins Michigan Democratic Senate Primary

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  By Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj | Kurdish Policy Analysis Despite massive spending by outside groups and high-profile endorsements for his opponent, Abdul El-Sayed secured a decisive Democratic Senate primary victory and now heads into a closely watched November showdown. Abdul El-Sayed has scored one of the most closely watched political upsets of the 2026 election cycle, defeating Representative Haley Stevens in Michigan's Democratic Senate primary despite facing more than $60 million in outside spending , much of it from pro-Israel political groups. The victory marks a significant breakthrough for the progressive wing of the Democratic Party and sets up a high-stakes general election contest against Republican Mike Rogers in November. El-Sayed's campaign prevailed even after Stevens received late endorsements from Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and influential national Democrats, including Representative James Clyburn . Those endorsements failed to reverse momentum behind El-S...
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US–Turkey Relations Explained: Cooperation, Competition, and Geopolitics


By Dr. Pshtiwan Faraj | Kurdish Policy Analysis  

The story begins after the fall of the Ottoman Empire and the establishment of the Republic of Turkey by Ataturk in 1923. The two countries established official relations in 1927, but relations remained limited and insignificant for two decades. At the time, the "Turkey Straits Crisis" of 1945 was a dramatic turning point at the beginning of the Cold War.

Stalin's demand for Soviet military bases in the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles to ensure control of the strategic route between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean caused deep concern in Turkey, and this pressure pushed the Turks into Washington's arms The strategy was generally based on the principle that the United States must prevent the expansion of communist hegemony after World War II, which served as a roadmap for US foreign policy.

Turkey's alliance with the United States was significantly strengthened during the Korean War (1950 - 1953), because at that time Turkey sent the "North Star Brigade" to fight against American forces; The Turkish brigade was the only unit of that size to be permanently assigned to an American division, as the then president said that the sacrifices and bravery of Turkish soldiers in battles such as the Battle of Wawon created a moral basis for Turkey's February 1952 entry into NATO.

In June 1964, US-Turkish relations were in serious crisis when President Lyndon Johnson sent a "Johnson Letter" to Prime Minister Ismet Owenlu (1884-1973), warning Turkey of the invasion of Cyprus and explaining that NATO might no longer defend it The peak of the protests was recorded in 1969, when the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, Robert Comer, was set on fire by protesters during his visit to the Technical University in Ankara (METU).

Tensions between the two countries culminated in Turkey’s invasion of Cyprus in 1974, a move that led to the imposition of a three-year U.S. arms embargo on Ankara (1975 - 1978). Ultimately, the criteria and needs of the Cold War decided the decision; Understanding in Washington that the geopolitical damage to NATO from continued sanctions outweighed the political benefits of pressuring Turkey, the embargo paradoxically appeared to be a positive turning point for the Turks:

In the 1980s and 1990s, relations normalized and even became a kind of strong strategic partnership; Turkey supported the United States in the 1991 Gulf War, allowed the use of Incirlik air base, and decided to close the Kirkuk-Ghan oil pipeline, a strategic energy artery that connects oil fields in northern Iraq to export ports in southeastern Turkey. 

The move was made despite the heavy economic damage to the Turkish economy, estimated at about $ 60 billion, President Bill Clinton, who visited Turkey in 1999, even called the relationship between the United States and Turkey "exemplary partnership.

The modern era of the 21st century began with a very unpleasant tone for Turkey; The Hood Event in 2003, in which US forces arrested Turkish soldiers in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq, and took them for questioning, was recorded by Turkey as a national trauma and a low point, seen as an insult to the dignity of the army was, which undermined security cooperation between the two countries for many years.

Fortunately for the Kurds, US-Turkish relations have fallen to a historic low over the past decade due to two main problems: US support for the Kurdish fighters YPG (People's Defense Units) in Syria, which Turkey considers a wing of the PKK; which Turkey accused of attempting the failed 2016 coup.

Another rift in the relationship occurred when Turkey bought the Russian S-400 air defense system, a move that led to its exclusion from the F-35 program and US sanctions in The same observers say that Turkey's biggest strategic mistake was the purchase of the Russian S-4

Turkey's fighter air system relies on 273 US F16s, and Amais has the largest number of such aircraft outside the United States - and most of them are new models and are constantly being updated.

Despite continued tensions, the two countries continued to cooperate in areas such as the fight against ISIS and intelligence coordination that led to the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in However, despite these good relations, the United States has not yet agreed to sell the F-35, as reported, Erdogan invited Trump to the Ankara NATO summit, once again asked for Trump's approval to sell the aircraft to Turkey.

#USTurkey #Turkey #UnitedStates #NATO #Geopolitics #MiddleEast #ForeignPolicy #Defense #Security #Erdogan #Trump #RegionalPolitics

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