Heads of state and government from member states of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) convene in Ankara this week. Ahead of the main summit, top diplomats of the OTS will be hosted by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Thursday in the capital for a meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers. The gathering is viewed as a step among Türkiye’s efforts to raise the profile of the international body. The OTS’ foreign ministers have already held four meetings, but most of them were informal. This time, it will be an official meeting, Foreign Ministry sources said, noting that they would consult with each other on work to institutionalize the organization and explore venues of cooperation.
Ministers are also expected to agree upon administrative and financial documents for the conduct of the OTS. Fidan will also hold bilateral talks with his counterparts on the margins of the meeting.
Sources said that in his speech at the meeting, Fidan would emphasize that political dialogue and the capacity for joint action among Turkic states have been strengthened under the OTS and that shared history, language, culture and fraternal ties have been translated into tangible cooperation.
He is also expected to state that, during Türkiye’s OTS chairpersonship, priority will be given to enhancing the organization’s institutional capacity, strengthening the Secretariat’s human and financial resources and capabilities, and intensifying coordination among Turkic cooperation organizations. He will also stress the importance of translating economic and strategic cooperation into concrete results, particularly in energy, trade, investment, digital transformation and the defense industry. He is also expected to underscore the importance of strengthening the Trans-Caspian Middle Corridor to enhance connectivity and economic resilience between Asia and Europe.
In addition, Fidan is expected to draw attention to developments in Afghanistan and their implications for regional security, stability and connectivity, emphasizing the need to increase consultations and coordination on these issues among OTS member and observer states.
The OTS summit, which will be hosted by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Friday in Ankara, is expected to review the current state of cooperation and future prospects, as well as regional and international developments of shared interest, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.
They will assess progress in the organization's priority areas, including political cooperation, trade and investment, transportation and connectivity, energy, digital transformation, cultural and humanitarian cooperation, and institutional development.
The organization has set a long-term plan called Turkic World 2040 Vision, and the summit is expected to stress concrete steps toward it.
Türkiye will take over the group's rotating chairpersonship from Azerbaijan. Leaders are expected to adopt the Ankara Declaration along with decisions and documents meant to deepen cooperation and strengthen the organization's institutions.
Turkish business groups are expected to hold events on the sidelines, with the Middle Corridor, border crossings, customs procedures and logistics costs set to feature in the talks.
The Middle Corridor, a trade route linking Asia and Europe through Central Asia and the South Caucasus, offers important opportunities for the economic integration of the Turkic world, the report said.
A digital economy partnership agreement among members aims to remove barriers to e-commerce, digital services and cross-border data-based activity. Türkiye ratified it in June, becoming the third country to complete domestic approval after Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan.
Members are also working on the Turkic States Digital Agriculture Data Platform for data exchange and smart farming solutions. At the 77th International Astronautical Congress in Antalya, members recently signed a framework agreement continuing a joint CubeSat project coordinated by the organization. Türkiye has been a net exporter to the organization's members in recent years. Shipments to the four full members, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, have grown from $6.2 billion in 2021 to $9.6 billion last year. Imports in the same period rose from $4.2 billion to $7.3 billion. Total trade last year came to nearly $17 billion. Kazakhstan was Türkiye's top export market at $3.2 billion, followed by Azerbaijan at $3 billion, Uzbekistan at $2.1 billion and Kyrgyzstan at $1.3 billion.
In the first eight months of this year, Türkiye exported $6.1 billion worth of goods and imported $5.4 billion, bringing trade to nearly $11.5 billion. Kazakhstan led again at $2 billion, followed by Azerbaijan at $1.9 billion, Uzbekistan at $1.3 billion and Kyrgyzstan at $832.8 million.
