― 14 ноября 2021 г.

The Turkic World came together in Istanbul

The 8th Summit of the Organization of Turkic States hosted by the President of the Republic of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan took place on November 12th, 2021 in Istanbul and gathered the President of the Republic of  Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev, the President of the Republic of  Kazakhstan Mr. Kassym Jomart Tokayev, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic Mr. Sadır Jabarov, the President of the Republic of  Uzbekistan Mr. Shovkat Mirziyoyev, the President of the Republic of   Turkmenistan Mr. Gurbangulu Berdimuhamedov, the Prime Minister of Hungary Mr.Viktor Orbán, the Secretary General of the Turkic States’ Organization Mr. Baghdad Amreyev, the Secretary General of TURKSOY Mr. Dusen Kasseinov, the President of the Turkic Academy  Mr. Darkhan Hydyrali, the President of the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation Mrs. Gunay Efendiyeva and the Secretary General of TURKPA Mr. Mehmet Süreyya Er.

Major decisions were made concerning the  future of the Turkic World on the Island of Democracy and Freedom. At the summit held under the motto "Green Technologies in the Digital Era  and Intelligent Cities”, leaders stressed the importance of joint action concerning issues of priority on the global agenda  and made a series of important decisions such as the change of the name of the organization which became the “Turkic States’ Organization”.

The Summit was preceded by the 8th Meeting of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs

The meeting held within the framework of the 8th Summit of the Organization of Turkic States and hosted by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey took place in Istanbul on  November 11th, 2021 and gathered the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mr. Jeyhun Bayramov,  the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan Mr. Muhtar Tileuberdi, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kyrgyz Republic Ruslan Kazakbayev, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan Mr. Abdülaziz Kamilov, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of  Turkmenistan Mr. Rashid Meredov, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary  Mr. Péter Szijjártó and the Secretary General of the Turkic States’ Organization Mr. Baghdad Amreyev along with the Secretary General of TURKSOY Mr. Dusen Kasseinov, the Chairman of the Turkic Academy Darkhan Hydyrali, the President of the Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation Mrs. Gunay Efendiyeva, the Secretary General of TURKPA Mr. Mehmet Süreyya Er and the wiseman of the Republic of Turkey Mr. Binali Yılıdırım from the Council of Wisemen of the Organization of Turkic States. 

In the speech he delivered at the meeting, the Secretary General of TURKSOY Mr. Kasseinov touched upon activities to be carried out by TURKSOY in the near future  and said: “Within the last 30 years, we have been reviving the cultural heritage transmitted from one generation to the next by our ancestors for thousands of years and strengthened our mutual ties of friendship, brotherhood and peace. With events we carried out in all fields of fine arts from Africa to Japan, we have proven that the inspiration we get from our common culture can turn into an essential instrument. In this respect, I would like to most sincerely congratulate the Organization of Turkic States which carries out successful activities to strengthen our mutual solidarity and express my gratitude to it for the importance it attaches to TURKSOY.”

The building of the Organization of Turkic States was inaugurated with a ceremony

The building of the Turkic States’ Organization located in Sultanahmet was inaugurated with an official ceremony prior to the Summit. The ceremony gathered the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan  Mr. Ilham Aliyev, the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan Mr. Kassym Jomart Tokayev, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic Mr. Sadyr Japarov, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan  Mr. Shovkat Mirziyoyev and the Prime Minister of the observer member state Hungary  Mr.  Viktor Orbán along with the President of the republic of Turkmenistan which also joined the organization. 

Towards Turkic Unity on the 30th anniversary of the independence of Turkic republics

At the summit which took place in Istanbul, the previous name of the organization refered to as the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States became the Turkic States’ Organization.

The term presidency of the Turkic States’ Organization which stepped up its efforts aiming at the integration of countries of the Turkic World with its new vision and goals  went over from  Azerbaijan to Turkey. The Istanbul Declaration resulting from the summit was signed by all leaders at the end of the meeting. 

After the summit which was followed up by many members of the Turkish and foreign press media, the President of the Republic of Turkey  Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan organized a press conference in which he made the following statement: "With our new name and structure called the Turkic States’ Organization, we will from now on grow stronger with even greater determination ansd persistance."

President Erdoğan who expressed his gratitude to heads of states and governments for honouring the event with their presence also conveyed his greetings to the Honorary Chairman Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev who participated in the summit with a video message.

President Erdoğan who said that with the participation of Turkmenistan as an observer, the Istanbul Summit gained a historical meaning, further added: "We have decided to rename our organization, the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States which has gained international recognition. From now on, it will pursue its activities as the Turkic States’ Organization. Soon, the time will hopefully come for the sun to rise from the East. The Turkic World which has been the cradle of civilization for thousands of years  will again become a center of attraction and enlightment for the entire humanity. In mutual consensus, member states and member states with an observer status are taking steps which will strengthen the institutional structure of our organization. The Turkic States’ Organization is much more than an organization aiming at economic or political interests. It is the incarnation of a harmonious unity. The further we bring this unity, the more successful activities we will be carrying out to bring about prosperity for our region and for the world. Noone should feel uncomfortable about the Turkic States’ Organization. On the contrary, everyone should try to be part of this voluntary structure based on an ancient history and human ties. In line with the natural roadmap of our civilization and culture, we will further foster our ties in all fields as member countries of this organization."

Membership with an observer status for Turkmenistan

Following the 8th Summit of the Turkic States’ Organization, participants signed the Istanbul Declaration. According to the declaration, Turkmenistan became a member state of the Turkic States’ Organization  with an observer status. Leaders stressed that this will foster the solidarity and cooperation among Turkic states and peoples. 

The declaration signed in Kazak, Kyrgyz, Turkish, Uzbek and  Azerbaijani languages and comprised of 121 articles featured major decisions such as the approval of the Turkic World Vision 2040 which is a the roadmap of the Organization for future perspectives.

With this summit, the Republic of Turkmenistan which adopts a traditional policy of neutrality  has joined the Organization as a member state with an observer status. Hence, this was the first participation of the President of the Republic of Turkmenistan Gurbanguli Berdimuhammedov in this summit held for the eighth time.

High Honour of the Turkic World Award to President Aliyev

Upon suggestion of the President of the Republic of Turkey Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, a  High Honour of the Turkic World Award was handed over to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan  Mr. Ilham Aliyev in recognition of the historical victory which brought about the liberation of territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan from their occupation and restored the territorial integrity of the country, hence, contributing to Turkic Unity and sustainable peace and development in the region.