From Yalta Conference to Antalya Diplomacy Forum

Importance of Antalya Diplomacy Forum:

In my opinion, the 'Antalya Diplomacy Forum', which is a candidate to be a center of attraction at least as much as the 'Davos Economic Forum', the main event of the 'World Economic Forum', and the 'Munich Security Conference', which brings together outstanding representatives of the fields of politics, economy, military and intelligence, is extremely attractive. has been successful. I sincerely congratulate all the colleagues who contributed to the establishment of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, and more than anything else, the professional officers of our Ministry of Foreign Affairs who work 24/7. Undoubtedly, the forum started with the trilogy of the Crimean Peninsula in the 1945 Yalta Conference with the participation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Sergey Lavrov and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmitro Kuleba, as well as the Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, and ended by fulfilling its duty.

After the meeting, the parties agreed to meet again and to inform the world public again. The format of the meeting is technically a 'forum', which is one of the types of academic discussion. The Forum is the name given to the area where citizens gathered to discuss public affairs in the capital city of Rome and in provincial cities during the Pax-Romana era. The method is also clear. It is a type of meeting that is organized on a subject, in which people who are in the position of listeners as well as speakers can take the floor. There is no need to add any other meaning to it. Especially, it is extremely wrong to impose a ceasefire mission.

As RF Foreign Minister Lavrov stated with capital letters, the ceasefire talks in Belarus are not parallel at all. As is known, all ceasefire negotiations are conducted and concluded between the soldiers. It is the determination of the line that is thought to pass through the boots of the soldiers of both sides and the end of their photons. In a sense, this is a truce, an armistice.

Mudanya Armistice:

I think it will suffice to remember the 'Mudanya Armistice Armistice' made in the house of Russian Trader Alexander Ganyanof, which concluded the War of Independence. When the Greek Armed Forces withdrew from Asia Minor and Anatolia, they did not leave a place that they did not burn or destroy, since the only surviving building in Mudanya is the house of the Russian Merchant Ganyanof, negotiations were held here. In the face of the success achieved with the Great Offensive, Greece offered Britain on September 2, 1922 to mediate for a ceasefire with Turkey. The Allied Powers formally informed the Ankara government on 7 September that Greece wanted a ceasefire. However, they could not find a place at the reconciliation table in the ceasefire negotiations, since they committed crimes on the level of genocide against humanity. The Armies of the Turkish Grand National Assembly fought with the Greek Armed Forces, and the British representative, General Sir Charles Harrington, represented them at the round table.

The Mudanya Conference started on 3 October 1921. The Western Front Commander İsmet Pasha participated in the negotiations on behalf of the Turkish Grand National Assembly. Chief of General Staff Fevzi Pasha (Çakmak) and Refet Pasha (Bele) took place as observers in Mudanya. General Sir Charles Harrington on behalf of England, General Charpy on behalf of France and General Monbelli on behalf of Italy attended the conference.

But let's see, it is clear that Greece still has not woken up from this dishonor, for example, Greek Prime Minister Mitçotakis and Foreign Minister Dandias seem to continue their serial salvos and impudence against Turkey. Sir, this situation is too immoral to be expressed with the words Europe's spoiled child or Europe's petulant child, which is often used for GKRK.

Round Table vs. U Table:

Why am I telling this? Because the Antalya Diplomatic Forum is not in the format of a ceasefire agreement. The forum has not been in the form of a round table session that resulted in more consensus. Soldiers go to public meetings more, gun cleaning, etc. They were made in the shape of an open-ended 'U'. But despite everything, the Antalya Diplomacy Forum has become the symbol of coming together and expressing yourself. In another sense, this is a call to humanity, the instrument and indicator of their righteousness took place in the form of a meeting to inform the world public opinion.

Then what is the situation of Turkey? The new missionary task that Turkey has undertaken in the region is expressed in the following sentences of the EU High Representative for Foreign Relations and Security Policy Joseph Borrel:

“Turkey is a geopolitical player in this region. The boundaries of the region where he plays games (in which he is effective) are also increasing. (Turkey) is a player in Europe, Libya and Somalia. Turkey is an important country. In other words, if we want to develop partnerships, Turkey is definitely our partner at this point, a candidate country to become a member. But we have some problems and obstacles. Some problems need to be resolved. If these are resolved, Turkey can play a very important role. Especially in this Ukraine war, Turkey can be a much more influential country." (1)

How come someone trying to get rid of his sins, isn't he?

Dear Readers. Turkey really plays a key role in resolving the Ukraine-Russia issue and it should continue to play this role. It is accepted by everyone that Turkey is a regional power and more than that. In short, he really has influence in both Russia and Ukraine. It is equidistant from both states. But it has been kept at the door of the EU for about 60 years. One of the two and a half military forces in Europe is the Russian Armed Forces in the "Continental Power" position, the other is the Turkish Armed Forces. “Strong State, Strong Army” is the simplest expression of this.

At the Antalya Diplomatic Forum, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov fully played the role of President Putin's special messenger, clearly stating and confirming that Putin is the decision-maker.

NATO Enlargement and Ukraine:

One thing needs to be made more clear. President Putin constantly expresses his dissatisfaction with NATO's enlargement and that Ukraine sees itself as an extension of NATO. He frequently emphasizes that his only wish is to be assured that Ukraine will not join NATO. When this issue was not fulfilled, it attempted to invade Ukraine. Is this the case? Let's all look behind the mirror now.

The changing understanding and environment of security after the end of the Cold War paved the way for NATO to develop relations not only with the Iron Curtain countries, but also with Russia and Ukraine. Within the framework of Russia's policy of normalizing its relations with the West, the relationship between Russia and Ukraine began to take shape with the participation of both Russia and Ukraine in the North Atlantic Cooperation Council in 1991 and the participation of both countries in NATO's Partnership for Peace Program in 1994. . So to speak, Russia and Ukraine have all knocked on NATO's door. After that, they always acted together. This process continued with the 1997 NATO-Russia Founding Act, the establishment of the NATO-Russia Permanent Joint Council and the NATO-Ukraine Commission as a forum for consultation and cooperation. (2) In fact, this situation is such a unity that it was reflected in the preamble of the 1996 Ukrainian Constitution adopted after the Cold War as follows:

“To take care to strengthen civil cohesion on the territory of Ukraine and to affirm the European identity of the Ukrainian people and the irreversibility of the Ukrainian European and Euro-Atlantic process,”(3)

So much so that this constitution became the Fundamental Law of Ukraine, guided by the Law of the Declaration of Independence of Ukraine of August 24, 1991, approved by national vote on December 1, 1991. To accept the wishes of the RF means that the "Sovereignty of Ukraine covers its entire territory," as stated in Article 2. Ukraine is a unitary state. The territory of Ukraine within its current borders is indivisible and inviolable.” It means tearing up the material. Likewise, it means not seeing the content of "There is only one citizenship in Ukraine" in the indispensable provision of Article 4. Russian President Vladimir Putin, in his speech at the meeting held with the female pilots of the Russian airline Aeroflot on the occasion of March 8, International Women's Day, after rejecting all these one by one, raised his challenge to the highest level and said, “Kyiv is about the future of the Ukrainian state if it continues in the same spirit. trouble happens.” He said. (4)

Difference of Antalya Diplomacy Forum:

After all this, I have to say that the Antalya Diplomatic Forum can be perceived as the II Yalta Conference in my opinion. Why is that? Is it similarity or contrast?

Then what was the distinguishing feature of the "Yalta Conference" held in Crimea on February 4-11, 1945? First of all, let's say that when it became clear that Germany would be defeated towards the end of the Second World War, it was a conference held for the redistribution of the world between the heads of state of England, the USA and the Soviet Union. At this conference, the "Masked Five", strengthened by the "Veto" tool, were determined and the address of the UN solution was put before the rest of the world as a freak draft institution. Clearly, "a system in which the mighty is right" was dictated to the states other than the five countries. Before the end of the Second World War, the three elders, Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin, appeared at the Yalta Conference, which was held for the purpose of sharing and dividing the world.

Conclusion:

The Antalya Diplomacy Forum, on the other hand, seems to be a candidate to take its place in history already, with its feature of being a conference where "the right can be strong" and all fates will disappear.

footnotes

(1) Habertürk, “Borrell: EU thinks that Turkey can be a bridge between Russia and Ukraine”, 12.03.2022; https://www.haberturk.com/borrel-turkiye-rusya-ve-ukrayna-arasinda-kopru-3373744/Access Date 13.03.2022/

(2) Aylin Ünver Noi, “NATO and Russia relations: From where to where?”, Anadolu Agency, 04.03.2022; https://www.aa.com.tr/tr/analysis/nato-and-russia-relations-from-where-to/2523737/ Access Date 13.03.2022/

(3) The 1996 Constitution of Ukraine, Adopted June 28, 1996, at the Fifth Session of the Verhovna Rada of Ukraine, https://www.ukr-ayna.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/Ukraine-Constitution- _T-rk-e-evirisi.pdf/ Accessed 13.03.2022/

(4) My newspaper, “Putin: It was a very difficult decision for me to take a military operation decision”, March 5, 2022; https://www.gazetemru.com/2022/03/05/putin-askeri-operasyon-kararini-almak-benim-icin-cok-zor-bir-karardi/ Access Date 13.03.2022/