I attended the Antalya Diplomacy Forum on Friday. Bringing together politicians, diplomats, academics, journalists and think tankers from 147 countries, the event has already claimed a respectable place among the world’s leading platforms.
The Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF) is one of the biggest brands of Turkish diplomacy. The forum, which fills a gap by focusing on diplomacy, is on its way to taking its place among the long-established international forums of its kind. It shows the high-level organizational capacity of Turkish institutions. The ADF, held since 2021, is a beneficial tool to advance foreign relations and set international political agendas.
Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to attend the Antalya Diplomacy Forum organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The forum addressed numerous issues concerning Türkiye's foreign policy priorities, with a particular focus on the reconstruction of the international system in an era of regional instability and global challenges. The theme of rebuilding the international system in the post-World War II era, based on 'rule-based' principles established by the United States, stood out as a central topic. However, it's evident that this system has failed to effectively address problems or maintain stability in today's world. Amidst discussions highlighting this fundamental issue, it was clear that Türkiye is seeking grounded leadership through realistic assessments of diplomacy's possibilities and limitations.
The Middle East rang in the new year with assassinations and terror attacks. Saleh al-Arouri, the deputy leader of Hamas' political bureau, was assassinated in Beirut last Tuesday. The following day, two bombings in Kirman, Iran (for which Daesh has claimed responsibility) killed 103 people. As those attacks shifted everyone’s attention to Israel, Iran and Hezbollah pledged to exact “revenge and a heavy price.”
The Turkish media reported two major developments with the potential to cause a stir in domestic politics. First, Sabah reported that the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) was going to host a pro-Palestinian event, the “Great Gathering for Palestine,” outside its provincial headquarters in Istanbul and that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and fellow leaders of the People’s Alliance would attend it. Secondly, the Directorate of Communications announced that President Erdoğan had signed Sweden’s NATO accession protocol and sent it to the Turkish Parliament.