ISTANBUL SECURITY CONFERENCE® 2023 “Navigating Conflict in an Interdependent Region”
The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Türkiye Office and long-lasting partner Başkent University Ankara organized the 15th edition of the Istanbul Security Conference® 2023 on “Navigating Conflict in an Interdependent Region” which was held on 24 and 25 April at the Conrad Bosphorus Istanbul Hotel. 200 international guests from 39 countries attended at this years’ ISC 2023. Senior officials and members of the parliaments from the host country and abroad, ambassadors and other diplomats accredited in Türkiye, representatives of 28 different universities, 60 international think tanks, NGOs and business communities were among the guests.
The opening remarks were made by Prof. Dr. Norbert LAMMERT (Chairman, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V. Berlin); Prof. Dr. İ. Haldun MÜDERRİSOĞLU (President, Başkent University Ankara) and H.E. Ambassador Jürgen SCHULZ (German Ambassador to the Republic of Türkiye in Ankara).
The Tour d’Horizon on “Russia’s war against Ukraine and its impact on Europe’s security” was moderated by Ali ASLAN, International TV Presenter and Journalist. Dr. Johann WADEPHUL (Member of German Parliament, Deputy Chairman of the CDU/CSU; Parliamentary Group for Foreign Affairs, Defence Policy and Council of Europe) together with Ambassador Baiba BRAŽE (Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy, NATO) shared their views on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The first day of the conference contained 4 different panels. Panel-1 entitled “Opportunities and challenges in the Wider Black Sea Region: Cooperation, Or…?” took place with the participation of distinguished speakers as Ambassador Lazăr COMĂNESCU, Secretary General, BSEC PERMIS Istanbul; Ambassador Rolf NIKEL, Vice President, German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP); Prof. Dr. Iulian CHIFU, State Counsellor, Foreign Policy, Security and Strategic Affairs, Romanian Prime Minister and Ambassador (R) Fatih CEYLAN, Former Representative of the Republic to Türkiye to NATO.
A lively discussion on Panel-2 “Eastern Mediterranean: Maritime disputes and geopolitical competition” took place with the valuable participation of Prof. Dr. Maria GAVOUNELI (Professor of International Law; Director, Refugee&Migration Studies Hub; Faculty of Law, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens); Prof. Dr. Alexander PROELSS (Chair in the International Law of the Sea and International Environmental Law, University of Hamburg; Member of the Board of the Foundation for the Law of the Sea) and Mithat RENDE (Ambassador (R), Former Permanent Representative of the Republic of Türkiye to the OECD).
The influence of Russia in and beyond Europe was discussed in Panel-3 with Roderich KIESEWETTER (Member of German Parliament, Special Representative Committee on Foreign Affairs/Spokesperson Crises Prevention), James F. JEFFREY (Ambassador, Chair, Middle East Program, Wilson Center), Dr. Benedetta BERTI (Head, Policy Planning in the Office of the Secretary-General, NATO) and Prof. Dr. Mitat ÇELİKPALA (Vice Rector, Kadir Has University).
On Monday, February 6, Türkiye was hit by two big earthquakes with the magnitudes of 7.7 and 7.6. A 500-kilometer-wide region in the southeast of the country with 10 provinces and approx. 13.5 million people were affected extensively. Over 1.400 emergency response personnel from more than twenty NATO Allies and partners were immediately deployed to Türkiye to support Turkish aid organizations in rescuing hundreds of people who were buried under collapsed buildings. More than 100 countries showed their solidarity and pledged humanitarian aid and monetary support. “Solidarity in Crises: Disaster Diplomacy” was the subject of Panel-4 with the participation of Ambassador Viktor MÁTIS (Ambassador of Hungary to the Republic of Türkiye), Nodar KHARSHILADZE (Founder, Georgian Strategic Analysis Center; Former Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Former Deputy Minister of Defense of Georgia) and Ambassador Irit LILLIAN (Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Republic of Türkiye).
Ambassador (R) Tacan ILDEM (Chairman of the Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies (EDAM), Member of NATO 2030 Independent Experts Group, Former NATO Assistant Secretary General) held a keynote Speech on “Security in the Black Sea region and its implications to the European Security Architecture“ on the last slot of the first day.
On the second day of the ISC 2023 the audience was divided into three parallel working groups:
Working Group-1 “Shifting geopolitical landscapes in the 100th year of the Republic of Türkiye”
Working Group-2 “Securitization of energy supply: National and regional actors – multilateral networks”
Working Group-3 “Changing climate – Changing demographies: The future of migration”
After two very successful days full of interaction and networking among the participants the Istanbul Security Conference® 2023 came to an end. The next conference will be held again in Istanbul in 2024.
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The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Türkiye Office and long-lasting partner Başkent University Ankara organized the 15th edition of the Istanbul Security Conference® 2023 on “Navigating Conflict in an Interdependent Region” which was held on 24 and 25 April at the Conrad Bosphorus Istanbul Hotel. 200 international guests from 39 countries attended at this years’ ISC 2023. Senior officials and members of the parliaments from the host country and abroad, ambassadors and other diplomats accredited in Türkiye, representatives of 28 different universities, 60 international think tanks, NGOs and business communities were among the guests.
The opening remarks were made by Prof. Dr. Norbert LAMMERT (Chairman, Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung e.V. Berlin); Prof. Dr. İ. Haldun MÜDERRİSOĞLU (President, Başkent University Ankara) and H.E. Ambassador Jürgen SCHULZ (German Ambassador to the Republic of Türkiye in Ankara).
The Tour d’Horizon on “Russia’s war against Ukraine and its impact on Europe’s security” was moderated by Ali ASLAN, International TV Presenter and Journalist. Dr. Johann WADEPHUL (Member of German Parliament, Deputy Chairman of the CDU/CSU; Parliamentary Group for Foreign Affairs, Defence Policy and Council of Europe) together with Ambassador Baiba BRAŽE (Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy, NATO) shared their views on the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The first day of the conference contained 4 different panels. Panel-1 entitled “Opportunities and challenges in the Wider Black Sea Region: Cooperation, Or…?” took place with the participation of distinguished speakers as Ambassador Lazăr COMĂNESCU, Secretary General, BSEC PERMIS Istanbul; Ambassador Rolf NIKEL, Vice President, German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP); Prof. Dr. Iulian CHIFU, State Counsellor, Foreign Policy, Security and Strategic Affairs, Romanian Prime Minister and Ambassador (R) Fatih CEYLAN, Former Representative of the Republic to Türkiye to NATO.
A lively discussion on Panel-2 “Eastern Mediterranean: Maritime disputes and geopolitical competition” took place with the valuable participation of Prof. Dr. Maria GAVOUNELI (Professor of International Law; Director, Refugee&Migration Studies Hub; Faculty of Law, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens); Prof. Dr. Alexander PROELSS (Chair in the International Law of the Sea and International Environmental Law, University of Hamburg; Member of the Board of the Foundation for the Law of the Sea) and Mithat RENDE (Ambassador (R), Former Permanent Representative of the Republic of Türkiye to the OECD).
The influence of Russia in and beyond Europe was discussed in Panel-3 with Roderich KIESEWETTER (Member of German Parliament, Special Representative Committee on Foreign Affairs/Spokesperson Crises Prevention), James F. JEFFREY (Ambassador, Chair, Middle East Program, Wilson Center), Dr. Benedetta BERTI (Head, Policy Planning in the Office of the Secretary-General, NATO) and Prof. Dr. Mitat ÇELİKPALA (Vice Rector, Kadir Has University).
On Monday, February 6, Türkiye was hit by two big earthquakes with the magnitudes of 7.7 and 7.6. A 500-kilometer-wide region in the southeast of the country with 10 provinces and approx. 13.5 million people were affected extensively. Over 1.400 emergency response personnel from more than twenty NATO Allies and partners were immediately deployed to Türkiye to support Turkish aid organizations in rescuing hundreds of people who were buried under collapsed buildings. More than 100 countries showed their solidarity and pledged humanitarian aid and monetary support. “Solidarity in Crises: Disaster Diplomacy” was the subject of Panel-4 with the participation of Ambassador Viktor MÁTIS (Ambassador of Hungary to the Republic of Türkiye), Nodar KHARSHILADZE (Founder, Georgian Strategic Analysis Center; Former Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Former Deputy Minister of Defense of Georgia) and Ambassador Irit LILLIAN (Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Republic of Türkiye).
Ambassador (R) Tacan ILDEM (Chairman of the Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies (EDAM), Member of NATO 2030 Independent Experts Group, Former NATO Assistant Secretary General) held a keynote Speech on “Security in the Black Sea region and its implications to the European Security Architecture“ on the last slot of the first day.
On the second day of the ISC 2023 the audience was divided into three parallel working groups:
Working Group-1 “Shifting geopolitical landscapes in the 100th year of the Republic of Türkiye”
Working Group-2 “Securitization of energy supply: National and regional actors – multilateral networks”
Working Group-3 “Changing climate – Changing demographies: The future of migration”
After two very successful days full of interaction and networking among the participants the Istanbul Security Conference® 2023 came to an end. The next conference will be held again in Istanbul in 2024.
