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Organization of Turkic States

Eurasian intergovernmental organization

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  • 10 chapters

Related on Lably

Through Turkic peoples, Soviet Union and Dissolution of the Soviet Union

In addition to Turkmenistan, the organization has also admitted Hungary and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus as observers, although the latter is only recognized by Turkey.

During the 8th summit in Istanbul in 2021, the organization was restructured and adopted its current name.

History

In 1991, with the emergence of five independent Turkic states—Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan—on the international stage, intensive diplomatic engagements commenced among the six Turkic states. The first Summit of Turkic Speaking Countries was held in Ankara in 1992, and between 1994 and 2000, five summits of heads of state were organized. The 7th Summit took place in Istanbul in 2001, while the 8th Summit was convened in Antalya, Turkey after a hiatus of 5.5 years, following Turkish initiatives. The 9th Summit of Heads of State of Turkic Speaking Countries was held on 2–3 October 2009 in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan. During this summit, within the framework of the Nakhchivan Agreement signed by Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, the establishment of an international organization called the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States (Turkic Council) was decided.

According to Halil Akıncı, the founding Secretary-General of the organization, the Turkic Council became the first voluntary alliance of Turkic states in history.

In 2012, the flag of the Turkic Council was adopted at its 2nd Summit, which took place in Bishkek on 23 August 2012, and officially raised on 12 October 2012. The flag combines the symbols of the four founding member states: the light blue color of the flag of Kazakhstan, which also evokes the traditional Turkic color of turquoise, the sun of the flag of Kyrgyzstan, the star of the flag of Azerbaijan, and the crescent of the Turkish flag.

On 30 April 2018, it was announced that Uzbekistan would join the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States and attend the upcoming summit of the organization in Bishkek. It formally applied for membership on 12 September 2019. Since late 2018, Hungary has been an observer and may request full membership. Turkmenistan received observer status in 2021. In November 2021, the organization was renamed the Organization of Turkic States. Its member states are increasingly focused on mutual security and strategic alignment positions. Local governments from 30 countries and regions are represented the Union of Municipalities of the Turkic World. The 6th Congress of the Union of Municipalities of the Turkic World was held in Istanbul on 10 June 2022. In 2022, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was admitted to the organization as an observer.

In September 2024, it was reported that the Commission on the Common Alphabet of the Turkic World, which is an arm of the OTS, had agreed on a common alphabet of 34 letters based on the Latin alphabet in an effort to transition away from the Cyrillic which had been imposed when under Soviet rule. TURKPA member Professor Nizami Jafarov of Baku State University made the announcement. The project for a common Turkic alphabet based on Latin was first proposed in 1991 after the dissolution of the USSR.

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