Türkiye would consider a possible Russian bid to join the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) as an observer with the approval of all member countries, ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) deputy leader Kürşad Zorlu has said.
Zorlu was responding to a proposal by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev for Russia to obtain observer status in the organization, as well as positive remarks on the idea by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
He described the 13th OTS summit in Türkiye as a historic milestone, highlighting the 163-point Ankara Declaration and the country’s assumption of the organization’s rotating chairmanship.
Addressing Russia’s potential involvement, Zorlu described the issue as sensitive and important, while stressing the longstanding cultural ties between Russia and the Turkic world.
He noted that millions of people in Russia share historical and ethnic links with Turkic communities, particularly in regions such as Tatarstan, Bashkortostan and Yakutia, arguing that cultural dialogue with Moscow was therefore natural.
Under a framework discussed at the summit, observer status in the OTS would be available to countries that recognize a Turkic or related language as a state or official language across their entire territory, rather than only in certain regions, Zorlu said.
Other countries outside this category could establish more flexible cooperation arrangements with the organization based on mutual interests, he added.
The framework, referred to as the OTS Plus cooperation model and proposed by Tokayev, would allow third countries to hold high-level meetings with the organization at the foreign minister or head-of-state level, subject to the unanimous approval of its members.
Any Russian request for observer status would be assessed under these principles, taking into account the organization’s strategic objectives and the common interests of the Turkic world, Zorlu said.
