ANKARA

Hosted by Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, an informal meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) will be held Saturday in Istanbul.

According to Turkish diplomatic sources, representatives from Türkiye, OTS chair Azerbaijan, and member states Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan will attend the meeting, with recent developments, as well as global and regional issues, expected to be the focus.

On the sidelines of the meeting, Fidan is anticipated to hold bilateral talks with his counterparts, while the heads of the visiting delegations are expected to be received collectively by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Sources say Fidan will deliver an address during the meeting, where he is likely to stress the importance of OTS countries expanding cooperation.

Fidan is also expected to draw attention to the importance of the Turkic world taking a common stance on diplomatic efforts to bring a swift end to the ongoing conflict between the US and Israel and Iran -- as well as the attacks targeting third countries.

The Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States was established under the Nakhchivan Agreement signed between Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan on Oct. 3, 2009. The organization was renamed the “Organization of Turkic States” (OTS) at the Istanbul Summit in 2021.

*Writing by Berk Kutay Gokmen