The Turkic Council was initiated in 1992 to develop multilateral cooperation among Turkic-speaking states. It was established at a time when the US encouraged Turkey to act as a “model state” for the former Soviet republics, as opposed to Russia and Iran. Recently Turkic Council held its Eighth Summit in Istanbul, Turkey.
The summit was held on 12 November 2021 and was hosted by the President of the Republic of Turkey, H.E. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and attended by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, H.E. Ilham Aliyev, the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, H.E. Kasım-Jomart Tokayev, the President of the Kyrgyz Republic, H.E. Sadyr Jabarov, the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, H.E. Shavkat Mirziyoyev, the President of Turkmenistan, H.E. Gurbangulu Berdimuhamedov, the Prime Minister of Hungary, H.E. Viktor Orbán and the Secretary-General of the Turkic Council H.E. Baghdad Amreyev in Istanbul.
The Eighth Summit of the Organization of Turkic States was a historic event that constituted a significant turning point for the Organization where the cooperation among the Member States entered a new era and where the Member States expressed their will for closer cooperation and deeper integration in the Turkic world. The theme of the summit was “Green Technologies and Smart Cities in the Digital Age” and had a huge discussion about the same. The Leaders also exchanged views on a number of important political and economic developments in the region and emphasized the increasing role and the promising future of the Organization in addressing these challenges in international arena.
Some of the significant developments took place during this Summit. Firstly, the name of the Turkic Council was changed to the Organization of Turkic States. Secondly, Turkmenistan joined this organization as an observer, which is considered to be a significant development. These developments for sure will provide a new direction to the framework and working of the members.
