Antalya Forum Day 1: Aliyev Holds 5 Bilaterals

The 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum opened on April 17 with a packed first day. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered the keynote address, while Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held five high-profile bilateral meetings on the sidelines, signaling Baku's heightened diplomatic visibility on the regional stage.

Aliyev's Bilateral Agenda

Aliyev met Syria's transitional president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, with talks centered on prospective Azerbaijani gas exports to Syria via Türkiye; al-Sharaa accepted an invitation to visit Azerbaijan. Aliyev also held meetings with Moldovan President Maia Sandu, focused on energy-sector cooperation; with Northern Cyprus President Tufan Erhürman; and with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. A three-way "cordial conversation" between Aliyev, Erdoğan and Sharif rounded out the day.

Erdoğan's Keynote

Erdoğan's opening speech ranged across three flashpoints. On the European Union, he said that "history, geography, and geopolitics remind us that Türkiye is part of Europe," reaffirming Ankara's continued EU membership pursuit. On Gaza, he cited figures of 73,000 Palestinians killed, more than 172,000 wounded, and over 21,000 of the dead being children. On the Strait of Hormuz, he argued that "if one arm of the strait belongs to Iran, the other belongs to Oman," and that Gulf states' right to access the open sea must not be obstructed.

A Crowded Forum

The forum, themed "Mapping Tomorrow, Managing Uncertainties," runs April 17-19 and hosts representatives from more than 150 countries, including 22 presidents and prime ministers, 14 vice presidents and deputy prime ministers, 39 interior ministers and over 500 high-level delegates. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is attending April 17-18, and a four-way ministerial meeting between Türkiye, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt is scheduled on the sidelines, focused on the Iran war and the Strait of Hormuz.