Twenty-one presidents and heads of state as well as 80 ministers, 59 of whom are foreign ministers, are to participate in this year’s Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF), Foreign Ministry spokesperson Öncü Keçeli said Wednesday.

"A participation of more than 4,000 people is expected," he told reporters.

The third edition of the forum will be held on March 1-3 after being postponed last year due to the deadly earthquakes. The program will be organized under the theme "Advancing Diplomacy in Times of Turmoil."

It is attended by heads of state and government, ministers, policymakers, opinion leaders, diplomats, business leaders and academics to discuss and exchange ideas on global and regional issues.

Over 40 panels will be held, one of which will be a special high-level panel focusing on Gaza.

Saying that the participation numbers are growing each year, Keçeli said that as a result of Türkiye’s policies on intensifying relations with Latin America and Africa, participation from these two continents is also high.

The forum aims to promote Türkiye’s diplomacy and foreign relations while advancing its friendship and cooperation with other nations. It takes place annually to contribute to Ankara’s regional and global values in diplomacy.

In 2022, the ADF was the scene of the first face-to-face meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba after the war started, as the forum provided a platform to discuss global challenges.