The Fourth Meeting of the Turkic Council Dıaspora Contact Group was held on 23 February 2018 in Istanbul. President of the Turks Abroad and Related Communities of the Republic of Turkey (YTB) Mehmet Köse, Deputy President of YTB Sayit Yusuf, Head of Administration of the State Committee on Work with Diaspora of the Republic of Azerbaijan Neriman Gurbanov, Deputy Head of the Committee at the Ministry of Culture and Sport of the Republic of Kazakhstan Galymzhan Meldeshev, Consul of Consulate General of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan in Istanbul Tilek Kozhogulov and relevant experts from member states attended the meeting, which was moderated by Deputy Secretary General Dr. Ömer Kocaman.
Upon the proposal of Turkish side, the parties discussed and updated the “Turkic Speaking Diaspora Joint Activity Strategy of the Turkic Council” taking into account the recent developments in the world and the region. It was agreed that Turkey will host the third meeting of the Ministers and Heads of Institutions in charge of Diaspora Affairs of the Turkic Council in April-May 2018. The stated strategy paper will be approved during the mentioned ministerial meeting.
The parties also consented on the critical elements of the Joint Action Plan, which sets out concrete steps to be taken between 2018 and 2019 within the scope of the cooperation among the Turkic Speaking diasporas.
The Second Diaspora Forum of the Turkic Council is going to be held at the end of 2018 or beginning of 2019 in Turkey with extensive participation of the diaspora representatives. The stated forum aims at unifying our peoples against the negative perceptions and propaganda staged against our states, strengthening ties between our residents and fellow citizens living abroad and forming shared values.
Within the scope of the meeting, the parties also decided to commence the preparation of the Turkic Council Diaspora Atlas with a view to promoting cooperation and coordination among the Turkic Speaking diasporas.