By Mehmet Enes Beşer Türkiye has become a Dialogue Partner of ASEAN, but a higher diplomatic title will not create regional influence on its own. Türkiye already has a broad cooperation agenda and an ASEAN–Türkiye Fund at the ASEAN Secretariat. The next step is to turn that existing fund into a predictable multi-year program, supported by a small implementation team ...
Last week, Türkiye had a packed political agenda. The political rupture within the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) following the court’s ruling of absolute nullity culminated in the party splitting in two and the establishment of a new party with the name of “New Party”. Another important development of the week was Türkiye’s admission as an ASEAN Dialogue Partner. ...
By Orçun Göktürk, from Beijing, China Türkiye’s diplomacy with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has cleared a critical hurdle. Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan announced that Türkiye has been accepted as an ASEAN Dialogue Partner by a decision taken by the ASEAN Foreign Ministers in Manila. This development is undoubtedly important. Ankara, albeit late, is coming to ...
Beyond “Asia Pivot” By Mehmet Enes Beşer Türkiye’s engagement with ASEAN is too often treated as a diplomatic side quest—interesting, occasionally useful, but ultimately peripheral to the “real” arenas of power politics. That framing is outdated. In a world where tariff wars, industrial policy, sanctions, and geopolitical rivalry are reshaping markets faster than ministries can rewrite talking points, Türkiye cannot ...
Cultural Diplomacy is the Missing Link By Mehmet Enes Beşer Türkiye has, of recent, stepped up its aspirations to deepen cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). As the new center of gravity shifts to the Indo-Pacific, Ankara has recalibrated its foreign policy to engage more actively in Asia as part of its “Asia Anew” strategy. Trade flows ...