Türkiye’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) will unveil its “Turkic World Vision Document” next Monday, coinciding with World Turkic Language Family Day, as part of a broader effort to strengthen political, cultural and economic cooperation across the Turkic world, party Deputy Chair Kürşad Zorlu has said.
Zorlu, who oversees the party’s relations with Turkic States, told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the Turkic world encompasses a vast geography. Beyond the Turkic states themselves, he said, related and kindred communities spanning roughly 6 million square kilometers (2.32 million square miles), including in the Balkans, Caucasus and the Middle East, fall within Türkiye’s sphere of responsibility and engagement.
He said the AK Party is working to support these communities so they can maintain their languages and cultures in the places where they live. Zorlu noted that the Directorate for Relations with Turkic States was created at the AK Party’s 8th Ordinary Grand Congress with the approval of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and has since focused on four areas: policymaking, expanding organizational structures across all 81 provinces, supporting coordination in interstate relations and deepening cooperation through visits and agreements.
“We have signed agreements with heads of state, parliamentary speakers, relevant ministries and, most importantly, the political parties in power in those countries,” he said, adding that collaboration continues to expand.
Zorlu announced that Türkiye will host the first “Turkic World Diplomacy and Politics Forum” next year, bringing together political parties from all Turkic states. He said politicians and researchers will develop common policies to be presented to heads of state for approval before being implemented by the bureaucracy.
“We have reached a very good point,” he said. “Now there is the Organization of Turkic States (OTS). And fortunately, we have a president who has sincerely and resolutely embraced this project.” He added that preparations are intensifying ahead of Türkiye’s hosting of the 13th OTS Summit in 2026.
The AK Party’s vision document, to be introduced with high-level participation, will outline the party’s outlook on the Turkic world and its historical context, Zorlu said.
The document includes situational analysis and strategic targets in fields ranging from economy and trade to energy and transportation. A long-term objective envisions raising foreign trade in the Turkic world to $100 billion. It also proposes new institutional structures to support future cooperation.
Zorlu said he recently briefed Erdoğan and the AK Party’s Central Executive Board on the document. “I would like to express with great satisfaction and pride that, starting with our President, our AK Party has a determined will toward the future of the Turkic world, cooperation and making us a much stronger actor in the global equation,” he said.
The vision document will be released in Turkish and six additional languages, and will also be published using a common Turkic alphabet spelling. The announcement ceremony will feature a specially choreographed performance, and representatives of the ruling political parties of seven member states of the Organization of Turkic States are expected to attend.
Zorlu highlighted the importance of Dec. 15, the date on which Danish scientist Vilhelm Thomsen deciphered the Orkhon Inscriptions in 1893. Following a joint proposal by Turkic states, UNESCO declared Dec. 15 “World Turkic Language Family Day” at its 43rd General Conference. He noted that President Erdoğan had proposed the designation at the OTS Summit in Gabala, Azerbaijan, on Oct. 7.
“Together, we will see the fundamental building blocks of our goal, as expressed by our president, to make the 21st century the Century of the Turkic World,” Zorlu said.
Ahead of the document’s release, the AK Party’s Directorate for Relations with Turkic States will hold a consultation camp in Ankara on Dec. 13-14 for its main organization, women’s branch and youth branch.
The event will open with the planting of 2,040 saplings toward the “2040 goal” under the “green homeland” initiative. Sessions will focus on building cooperation networks with civil society, universities and the business world in all 81 provinces, and will also feature presentations by various institutions and remarks from several ministers.
