The geopolitical stars are beginning to align for "peace" in the Middle East.

An ancient rivalry takes on modern dimensions in the stories of Turkey and Iran.

Turkish artillery and drone strikes against Kurdish forces are spiking in Syrian Kurdistan after Turkish president Erdogan encountered opposition from Iran and Russia regarding a fourth planned Turkish military offensive.

History shows a pattern of conflict between the kings of modern day Iran and Turkey, as they struggled for control of the greater Middle East.

Ukrainian invasions. Middle Eastern revolutions. World wars and nuclear brinksmanship. The Wire presents a short article on the long history of competition, cooperation and conflict between Russia and Turkey.

For 400 years, the Turkish Ottoman Empire controlled Jerusalem. To the sultan caliphs, the Holy City was a mandate to the "throne of the Caliphate." Today, a century after Jerusalem was taken by the British, and then Israel, a new Turkish leader seeks to reassert his authority in the place he calls "Our City."