ADF kicks off to boost diplomacy amid global chaos

Serkan Demirtaş - ANTALYA

The fourth Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF), which brings together world leaders, policymakers, diplomats, experts and academics from across the world to discuss global issues amid tectonic changes in the international system, begins on April 11 in Türkiye’s key resort city, with speeches from President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

The three-day forum will convene under the theme “Reclaiming Diplomacy in a Fragmented World” and focus on redefining the role of diplomacy in resolving regional and global issues.

The official launch of the ADF will be held in the afternoon on April 11 through the address of Erdoğan, who will outline the basics of Turkish foreign policy and its immediate objectives in its region and beyond.

Nearly 450 representatives from approximately 140 countries, including more than 20 heads of state and government, two speakers of parliament, 74 ministers, 23 deputy ministers and 11 parliamentarians will participate in the forum. Some 950 journalists from nearly 50 countries have been accredited for the forum.

The ADF will witness around 50 sessions in three different formats during which the participants will have the opportunity to debate topics that concern different geographies as well as asymmetric threats to the global order.

Among the high-level participants of the forum are Azerbaijani President İlham Aliyev, Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Montenegrin President Jakov Milatovic, Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, Hungarian President Viktor Orban and Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu.

Council of Europe Secretary-General Alain Berset and OSCE Secretary-General Feridun Sinirlioğlu will also be present at this year’s ADF.

Ankara to focus on Gaza

Fidan, as the host of the ADF, will engage in bilateral and multilateral meetings on the margins of the event. One of the top issues he will address in all these diplomatic activities will be improving the situation of Palestinians and Gaza following the resumption of Israeli attacks.

To this end, the first event he will attend will be the Gaza contact group’s meeting on April 11, hours before the official start of the ADF.

Along with Fidan, the foreign ministers of Indonesia, Bahrein, Palestine, Qatar, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan will attend the meeting along with Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Abdul Gheid and Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary-General Hussein Brahim Taha.

Representatives from Nigeria, Ireland, Spain, Norway, Slovenia, China, Russia and the European Union are also expected to be present at the meeting.

According to diplomatic sources, Fidan will underline that the vision for a two-state solution has been weakened in the aftermath of the Israeli resumption of attacks that resulted in further deterioration of the situation in Gaza.

He will call on the Gaza contact group to intensify its works for a permanent ceasefire, release of hostages and prisoners and full humanitarian access to Gaza, the sources stressed, while underscoring the importance of supporting the efforts of Qatar and Egypt to this end.