ASEAN grants Türkiye Dialogue Partner status

Türkiye has become an ASEAN Dialogue Partner, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announces, following a decision by ASEAN Foreign Ministers in Manila.

Fidan said on Tuesday in a post on X that the outcome reflects Türkiye’s multi-dimensional foreign policy under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s leadership, one he described as capable of shaping the international agenda and the global system.

The status places Türkiye in a category immediately below full ASEAN membership, a position previously extended to only 11 countries worldwide, Fidan noted.

The Turkish foreign minister thanked his counterparts who supported Ankara’s bid since it was formally submitted in 2024, along with Philippine officials in their capacity as ASEAN’s current chair, and the ASEAN Secretariat for steering the process.

Global diplomacy

Fidan called the development highly significant for strengthening Türkiye’s presence in the Asia-Pacific, which he identifies as the eastern axis of the country’s global diplomacy.