Turkey

Southeastern Europe and Southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria

39 00 N, 35 00 E

Middle East

slightly larger than Texas

7,200 km

temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior

high central plateau (Anatolia); narrow coastal plain; several mountain ranges

coal, iron ore, copper, chromium, antimony, mercury, gold, barite, borate, celestite (strontium), emery, feldspar, limestone, magnesite, marble, perlite, pumice, pyrites (sulfur), clay, arable land, hydropower

52,150 sq km (2022)

the most densely populated area is found around the Bosporus in the northwest, where 20% of the population lives in Istanbul; with the exception of Ankara, urban centers remain small and scattered throughout the interior of Anatolia; an overall pattern of peripheral development exists, particularly along the Aegean Sea coast in the west, and the Tigris and Euphrates River systems in the southeast

strategic location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) that link the Black and Aegean Seas; the 3% of Turkish territory north of the Straits lies in Europe and goes by the names of European Turkey, Eastern Thrace, or Turkish Thrace; the 97% of the country in Asia is referred to as Anatolia; Istanbul, which straddles the Bosporus, is the only metropolis in the world located on two continents; Mount Ararat, reputed to be the landing place of Noah's ark, is in the far-eastern part of the country

Turkish 70-75%, Kurdish 19%, other minorities 6-11% (2016 est.)

ڕاستییەکانی جیهان، باشترین سەرچاوەیە بۆ زانیارییە بنەڕەتییەکان (Kurdish)

The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Muslim 99.8% (mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews)

0.59% (2025 est.)

13.56 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

6.19 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

-1.51 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

the most densely populated area is found around the Bosporus in the northwest, where 20% of the population lives in Istanbul; with the exception of Ankara, urban centers remain small and scattered throughout the interior of Anatolia; an overall pattern of peripheral development exists, particularly along the Aegean Sea coast in the west, and the Tigris and Euphrates River systems in the southeast

15.848 million Istanbul, 5.397 million ANKARA (capital), 3.088 million Izmir, 2.086 million Bursa, 1.836 million Adana, 1.805 million Gaziantep (2023)

26.6 years (2020 est.)

15 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

1.88 children born/woman (2025 est.)

0.92 (2025 est.)

2.24 physicians/1,000 population (2022)

3 beds/1,000 population (2020 est.)

32.1% (2016)

1.5% (2018 est.)

59.6% (2021 est.)

presidential republic

civil law system based on various European systems, notably the Swiss civil code

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

18 years of age; universal

ADB (nonregional member), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CBSS (observer), CD, CE, CERN (observer), CICA, CPLP (associate observer), D-8, EAPC, EBRD, ECO, EU (candidate country), FAO, FATF, G-20, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIC, OPCW, OSCE, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club (associate), PCA, PIF (partner), SCO (dialogue member), SELEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNOOSA, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

29 October 1923 (republic proclaimed, succeeding the Ottoman Empire)

Republic Day, 29 October (1923)

vertical crescent moon with adjacent five-pointed star

red, white

upper-middle-income, diversified Middle Eastern economy; industrializing economy that maintains large agricultural base; key energy, tourism, and construction sectors; high inflation, interest rates, and foreign debt pose risk to financial stability

$1.323 trillion (2024 est.)

sugar beets, wheat, milk, tomatoes, barley, maize, potatoes, apples, grapes, watermelons (2023)

textiles, food processing, automobiles, electronics, mining (coal, chromate, copper, boron), steel, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper

2.2% (2024 est.)

36.081 million (2024 est.)

13.9% (2022 est.)

18.5% (of GDP) (2023 est.)

Germany 9%, USA 6%, UK 6%, UAE 5%, Iraq 5% (2023)

garments, cars, gold, refined petroleum, vehicle parts/accessories (2023)

China 13%, Russia 9%, Germany 9%, Switzerland 6%, USA 5% (2023)

gold, refined petroleum, cars, plastics, natural gas (2023)

Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) operates multiple TV and radio networks and stations; multiple privately owned national TV stations and 567 private regional and local TV stations; multi-channel cable TV available; 1,007 private radio stations (2019)

.tr

TC

116 (2025)

240 (2025)

approximately 495,000 active military personnel; approximately 150,000 Gendarmerie (2025)

the military's inventory is comprised of domestically produced and mostly European (such as Germany, Italy, and Spain) or US armaments; other suppliers have included Russia and South Korea; Türkiye's defense industry produces a range of weapons systems for both export and internal use, including armored vehicles, naval vessels, and unmanned aerial vehicles/drones; some of its domestically produced armaments are produced jointly with foreign partners or based on imported weapons systems and produced under license (2025)

military service is compulsory for Turkish men 20-41 for a period of 6-12 months; men and women may volunteer (2025)

approximately 250 Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR); approximately 30,000 Cyprus; 730 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); Turkiye also has several thousand military personnel deployed to other countries under bilateral agreements, including Azerbaijan, Libya, Qatar, and Somalia  (2025)