Turkey stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in western Asia and Thrace in the Balkan region of southeastern Europe. The Eurasian nation is bordered by numerous countries, including Armenia, with which it has a history of strained relations.Associated Press: Turkey, Armenia Ties Improve (April 4, 2009)

On May 4, 2009, at least 45 people were reported killed in an attack on a wedding ceremony in southern Turkey. According to reports, masked gunmen burst into the wedding, tossing grenades and firing rounds from semiautomatic weapons. Turkey's interior ministry denied speculation that militant Kurdish separatists may have been responsible for the massacre.Al Jazeera English: Dozens killed at Turkey wedding (May 5, 2009)

The modern secular Republic of Turkey was founded in 1923 after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire by nationalist leader Kemal Ataturk. Turkey's strategic location between Europe and Asia has given it major influence in the region - and control over the entrance to the Black Sea. Due to this location, Turkey's culture has a unique blend of Eastern and Western tradition.

The Ottoman Empire was a multi-ethnic and multi-religious Turkish-ruled state which, at the height of its power from the 16th to the 17th Century, spanned three continents from Southeastern Europe to the Middle East and North Africa. The empire was at the center of interactions between the East and West for six centuries.

Turkey has refused to acknowledge what scholars call the "Armenian Genocide," in which up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed in 1915. While most mainstream scholars view the events as a systematic extermination, some academics with Turkish ties have deemed the deaths to have been fewer in number and caused as a side-effect of World War I.

Turkey is bordered by eight countries: Bulgaria, Greece, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq and Syria. It is bordered by three bodies of water: The Mediterranean Sea, the Aegean Sea and the Black Sea.

President Barack Obama's first trip to a Muslim country was to Turkey in April 2009. Obama gave a half-hour long speech the Turkish parliament on April 6, 2009. In the address, Obama assured Turkey that the U.S. supports Turkey's bid to join the European Union. Obama also made it clear that the U.S. is "not and will never be at war with Islam."CNN: Obama Vows U.S Is not at war with Islam (April 6, 2009)

• Al Jazeera English: Dozens killed at Turkey wedding (May 5, 2009)

• This Week: Turkeys trial of the century (October 21, 2008)

• The New York Times: Minority Rules (February 17, 2008)

• AFP: Turkish PM, president push for abolition of headscarf ban (September 19, 2007)

• Guardian Unlimited: "Gul sworn in as Turkey's president" (August 29, 2007)

• The New York Times: "Former Islamist Is Voted in as President of Turkey" (August 28, 2007)

• International Herald Tribune: "Sarkozy offers a proposal on EU-Turkey talks" (Augsut 27, 2007)

• BBC News: Iraq vows to oust Kurdish rebels (August 7, 2007)

• Guardian Unlimited: US joins Turkey's war against rebel Kurds (July 30, 2007)

• Bianet.org: Turkey News in English

• National Geographic: Turkey Overview and Information