Experts hailed the Baku Summit of the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States (Turkic Council) as a great success. The heads of state and government made very interesting speeches at the event. They discussed a more optimal model of cooperation among nations that share common roots. The nations agreed to boost integration within the Turkic world without casting shadow on the achievements of the Turkic Council. They put forward specific proposals in this regard. The meeting participants highlighted the prospects of cooperation among Turkic states. This article will look at the geopolitical importance of the Baku Summit of the Turkic Council.
Cooperation prospects at modern stage: historic chance for Turkic nations
The role of integrative organizations is nowadays growing. This matches the spirit and logic of the ongoing globalization process. But the experience shows that not all the organizations pursuing an integrative goal live long. The main idea here is to fulfill an integrative function. The experience of the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States shows that the idea of Turkic unity is well grounded and is a historical necessity. It was well evidenced by the 7th Summit of the Turkic Council held in Baku on October 15.
Experts rightly call the summit historic. The decisions made, the tasks and goals set at the event were of great historic significance in terms of geopolitics, economy, and culture of a large region. For the first time the Turkic states considered their relations and cooperation prospects in a larger scale. The Baku Summit set important global, regional and national tasks.
Addressing the event, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said the Turkic Summit coincided with the 10th anniversary of Nakhchivan Agreement. The head of state said Azerbaijan had made maximum efforts to deepen cooperation with Turkic states. ”The common roots that connect us, our history, culture and national values are an important basis for mutually beneficial activities. The development of cooperation between Turkic-Speaking States is one of the priority areas of Azerbaijan’s foreign policy.”
The President praised the historic importance of the 2009 Nakhchivan Summit in terms of strengthening unity among the Turkic states. Ilham Aliyev said: ”The summit of the heads of state held in the ancient Azerbaijani city of Nakhchivan in October 2009 set up a new institutional format for cooperation among our countries. Zangezur is located between the main part of Azerbaijan and the Nakhchivan region. The withdrawal of Zangezur from the rest of Azerbaijan and its accession to Armenia divided the great Turkic world geographically. However, thanks to the decisions we made in Nakhchivan and our joint work, we have further strengthened the unity of the Turkic world and will continue our brotherhood. In this sense, the decision to set up the Turkic Council during the summit held in Nakhchivan is also of tremendous significance for the Turkic world.”
These words were of great importance because the Azerbaijani President said the accession of Zangezur to Armenia aimed to divide the Turkic geography. That dealt a serious blow to the development of relations among the Turkic nations. But the adoption of a historic decision in Nakhchivan in 2009 was symbolic in terms of uniting the Turkic geography. The experience showed that the decision made in Nakhchivan has been extremely effective.
From “One nation, two states” to “Turkic vision 2040”: lessons of history and realities
It was evidenced by the remarks made by other heads of Turkic states at the Baku Summit. The honorary chairman of the Turkic Council, the elder of the Turkic world Nursultan Nazarbayev put forward interesting ideas aimed at boosting integration.
The first President of Kazakhstan-Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev proposed developing the concept of the Turkic world integration, preparing the “Turkic vision 2040” program and using ”Turkic states” instead of ”Turkic speaking states”.
In fact, this idea takes roots from national leader Heydar Aliyev’s famous “One nation, two states” phrase, which he coined to describe, symbolically and laconically, the Turkic unity of Azerbaijan and Turkey. The idea emphasizes common roots of two societies that are called similarly as states –Turkic states.
By the way, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that it was high time to use ”one nation, six states”. These states are Azerbaijan, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan. The national leader`s “Turkic states” concept has justified itself from historical, political, geopolitical, economic, and cultural points of view and demonstrated its unifying potential. Naturally, this idea needs to be developed. In this regard, efforts made by presidents Ilham Aliyev, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Elbasy Nursultan Nazarbayev are very effective.
In this context, the 7th Summit of the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States in Baku was of historic significance as it saw the adoption of specific documents and decisions on the future cooperation. Developing the Turkic Council into an international organization is of crucial importance. The Baku Summit adopted decisions on getting an observer status with the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
In this context, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban put forward very interesting proposals to build relations between the Turkic states and the European Union. Orban said the majority of the Hungarian population have Turkic roots. He stressed the importance of the founding of an office of the Turkic Council in Budapest. Hungary undertook to fully cover all costs of the office. In addition, the Hungarian government attaches special significance to promoting Hungarians to senior posts in the European Union. The expansion of this process will contribute to the strengthening of relations with the European Union.
In fact, Hungary assumed a historic integrative function because Turkic states will have the opportunity to be represented in the European Union, which, in turn, will pave the way for fruitful cooperation. Most importantly, the organization of the Turkic states will get global recognition.
All these facts confirm geopolitical significance of the Baku Summit of the Turkic Council. What should especially be underlined is that Azerbaijan took over the chairmanship of the Council. Azerbaijani diplomacy has been quite active in international organizations. This opens up additional opportunities for increasing the world community`s awareness of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in a more effective manner. The Turkic Council has already affirmed its support for Turkey’s Operation Peace Spring. At the same time, the Council demanded the soonest possible peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in accordance with the principle of Azerbaijan`s territorial integrity. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged it openly and unambiguously.
There are no doubts that the Baku Summit of the Turkic Council will play a crucial role in developing and deepening relations among the Turkic nations. It will open new horizons for cooperation among them, also contributing significantly to their coordinated activity as part of ”One Belt, One Road” project, which is planned to pass through the territory of the Turkic states.
In addition, the Summit will help the Turkic nations elevate their cultural, spiritual and scientific relations to a new level. They will undoubtedly take specific steps towards this goal. And Baku’s historic role in this process is recognized by all.
