A busy week awaits President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as he left for Kyrgyzstan’s Bishkek on Monday. The president is scheduled to attend a heads of state summit of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) there on Tuesday and Wednesday before leaving for Europe.
This is Erdoğan’s second visit to Central Asia in weeks, after attending a high-profile meeting of BRICS. Türkiye seeks to expand its ties to Asia after it sought its fortunes in the West for decades. Erdoğan insists Ankara has not turned its back on the West as it aspires to join BRICS although he often complains of political and diplomatic problems with Europe and the United States, namely their staunch support for Israel.
The OTS meeting will focus on economic integration, sustainable development, the digital future and security. Participating countries are expected to sign several cooperation deals and approve multilateral projects of the body. The organization marked its 15th anniversary in October. It brings together Turkic-speaking countries and was formed by Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Türkiye. It also serves to enhance the geopolitical position of the Turkic world, with its member countries covering a total area of 4.25 million square kilometers (over 1.6 million square miles) and a population of around 160 million, gaining considerable regional recognition over the past 15 years.
From Kyrgyzstan, Erdoğan will travel to Hungary for the European Economic Community meeting, which will be held on Nov. 6-7. Hungary, which currently holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union, significantly developed its relations with Türkiye under Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a close friend of Erdoğan.
The president will later head to Azerbaijan for the COP29 summit on Nov. 11 and Nov. 12. COP29, the 29th annual U.N. Climate Change Conference, will bring together world leaders, negotiators and environmental experts to assess progress in combating climate change and advance the goals of the Paris Agreement target of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit).
Discussions will focus on enhancing countries' nationally determined contributions (NDCs) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote climate adaptation and ensure a just transition to low-carbon economies with an emphasis on equity, gender inclusion and support for vulnerable nations.