Physical Address
Indirizzo: Via Mario Greco 60, Buttigliera Alta, 10090, Torino, Italy
Istanbul will host the first Balkan Peace Platform with the participation of the region’s countries on Saturday to increase cooperation and boost regional peace.
The meeting is expected to include the foreign ministers of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Serbia, while the deputy foreign minister of Albania will also participate.
The platform aims to enhance dialogue, mutual trust and cooperation among regional countries and to produce lasting solutions to regional issues.
Diplomatic sources said Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is expected to emphasize the importance of acting with an approach based on the principle of regional ownership
He will conduct consultations on strengthening regional integration, maintaining stability and eliminating existing security risks. Moreover, the sources said Türkiye’s top diplomat would discuss concrete cooperation projects in the areas of connectivity, energy and communications, particularly transportation corridors.
The sources underlined that the platform is not an alternative to other initiatives but rather complementary to them.
Fidan is expected to express Türkiye’s prioritization of all constructive initiatives that will contribute to regional peace, dialogue and shared prosperity.
Fidan is also scheduled to hold bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the meeting.
The Balkan Peace Platform has been developed within the framework of Türkiye’s innovative diplomacy understanding and is an initiative that aims to respond to the region’s needs.
Türkiye has become a remarkable actor in the Balkans as a natural result of economic growth and foreign policy versatility in the last 20 years.
Türkiye puts emphasis on peace, stability and good neighborhood solidarity in the Balkans. It offers solutions for the chronic problems of the region because it believes that struggling with expansionist nationalist tendencies and overcoming the problems created by micro nationalism is only possible with sovereign equality of states. In this context, Türkiye is attentive to minorities living within the borders of the Balkan states, not to be discriminated against and to protect the identities of those peoples.
Apart from its diplomatic missions, Türkiye also provides economic, technical and humanitarian aid to Balkan countries through semi-official institutions such as the Yunus Emre Institutes, the Turkish Red Crescent (Kızılay), the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) and the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).
As part of Türkiye’s initiatives in the Balkans, Belgrade and Ankara initiated the trilateral consultation mechanism with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia.
Furthermore, Türkiye regularly participates in structures such as the Southeast European Cooperation Process, the Regional Cooperation Council, and the Steering Committee of the Peace Implementation Council in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Türkiye also contributes to regional stability through the NATO KFOR and EUFOR Althea movements.
The KFOR started its duty in Kosovo on June 12, 1999, following a U.N. Security Council decision to ensure security and stability. The mission has over 4,500 international military personnel from 27 countries, including 21 NATO members and six non-NATO partner countries. Türkiye took command of NATO’s KFOR on Oct. 9, 2023, the first time it has done so.
Among 27 NATO member countries and partners, Türkiye has the second-largest contingent in the KFOR, contributing at least 780 of its approximately 4,500 soldiers. Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and was recognized by many countries, including Türkiye. But Belgrade has never recognized Kosovo and claims it is still part of Serbia. Türkiye maintains good relations with both Kosovo and Serbia.
