On October 9, the Department of International Relations, in cooperation with Ankara Policy Center and the Center for Foreign Policy and Peace Research, held a conference titled “Turkish Foreign Policy on the 100th Anniversary of the Republic: A Reckoning and the Future.” The conference, held to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Turkey, opened with welcoming speeches by Vice Rector Orhan Aytür, FEASS Dean Refet Gürkaynak and Ambassador (R) Fatih Ceylan. Deputy Foreign Minister Burak Akçapar joined the first session to talk about Turkey’s recent foreign policy under the moderation of Department Chair Özgür Özdamar. The deputy foreign minister reviewed Turkey’s current diplomacy and foreign affairs and provided an overview of current international events. He emphasized the importance of changing trends surrounding Turkey at both regional and global levels, stressing the importance of Turkey’s future role in international politics in light of these global changes. The second session proceeded with Tuğba Bayar’s moderation as Ersel Aydınlı, Mustafa Aydın and Seçkin Köstem shared their views on Turkish foreign policy and security, the economy and Turkey’s relations with the West. The final session was held under Efe Tokdemir’s moderation with Özgür Özdamar, Sinem Açıkmeşe and Zeynep Alemdar elaborating on Turkish foreign policy and its relations with domestic politics, identity, institutions and gender.
The conference provided an opportunity for students to come together with prominent scholars of the field to review Turkish foreign policy and to commemorate the Turkish Republic’s 100th Anniversary.
