4th Meeting of the Foreign Policy Research Official Centers of the Member States of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States was held in Baku on 10 th November 2017.

The meeting focused on a topic of Impact of Geopolitical Changes to the future of the Turkic Council.

In his opening address Secretary General of the Turkic Council Ambassador Ramil Hasanov touched upon the priorites and cooperation issues of the Turkic Council and emphasized the vital importance of the cooperation among the Official Foreign Policy Centers, believing that this cooperation directly contributes to the integration process of the Member States.

Then he underlined the geopolitical implications of the BTK railroad in linking all Central Asian Turkic countries to Europe, therefore strengthening the fraternal bonds of the Turkic States, increasing economic activity and boosting geopolitical importance of the region.

During the meeting other speakers, Mr. Arastu Habibayli, Deputy Director of the Foreign Policy Issues Department of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ms. Çiğdem Tenker Göksel, Head of Division at Center for Strategic Studies under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey, Mr. Kazbek Isayev, Deputy Director of Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Mr. Nuradil Baydoletov, Deputy Director, National Institute of Strategic Studies of the Kyrgyz Republic and Dr. Farhad Mammadov, Director of the Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan discussed the possible cooperation issues among the official think tanks of the Member States.

Following the meeting, Secretary General Hasanov made several interviews with press.

Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Turkic Speaking Countries, International Turkic Academy, Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation, Ambassadors of the Member States and Ambassadors of Georgia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and the representatives of other accredited Embassies in Baku and local state authorities were also present at the event.

Secretary General Ramil Hasanov was accompanied by the Project Directors Ceyhun Şahverdıyev, Pelin Musabay Baki, Chief of Protocol Emre Yurdakul and Deputy Head of the Financial and Administrative Affairs Araz Salmanov.