{"id":11491,"date":"2022-10-31T15:33:13","date_gmt":"2022-10-31T15:33:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/2022\/10\/cu\/"},"modified":"2024-11-20T22:06:38","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T19:06:38","slug":"turkey-and-latin-america-new-era-of-opportunities-ceren-uysal-oguz","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/2022\/10\/turkey-and-latin-america-new-era-of-opportunities-ceren-uysal-oguz\/","title":{"rendered":"Turkey and Latin America: New Era of Opportunities – Ceren Uysal O\u011fuz"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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With the end of the Cold War, when Turkey intended to develop a more diverse foreign policy, Latin America and the Caribbean became a region of interest regarding diplomatic, economic, and cultural relations. To this end, \u201cthe Action Plan for Latin America and the Caribbean\u201d was adopted in 1998. However, during that period, the aim of improving the relations was not reached, and the level remained relatively low. In 2006 the Action Plan was revised, and that year was declared in Turkey as \u201cthe Year of Latin America and the Caribbean\u201d. Since then, official visits on presidential and ministerial levels between Turkey and several Latin American and Caribbean countries have been conducted,[1]<\/a> new embassies<\/a> have been opened mutually,[2]<\/a> an trade, academic and cultural relations have been improved, complying with Turkey\u2019s \u201centerprising and humanitarian foreign policy<\/a>\u201d motto. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the main motivations behind Turkey\u2019s opening to\nLatin America and the Caribbean is to increase the trade volume with the\nregion’s growing economies. Since the beginning of the 21st<\/sup> century,\nthe region has received lots of attention due to drastic political and economic\nchanges. Latin American and Caribbean countries have been developing significant\nintra-regional cooperation, signing bilateral agreements, and forming regional\nintegration mechanisms. The United States is the top trade partner, especially\nfor Mexico and most Caribbean countries. However, the historical context of\nrelations between the U.S. and most of the countries in the region creates deep\nskepticism, especially among the left-wing governments, having them look for\nalternative trade partners. The European Union, taking advantage of some of its\nmembers\u2019 cultural, historical, and linguistic proximity to the region, is\nanother important actor in Latin America. Thus, in terms of multidimensional\ncooperation, the EU has a significant advantage in the region; however, the\npremise of promoting democracy in countries such as Venezuela draws some\ncriticism too. China, establishing itself as a crucial trade and investment\npartner for some countries, is being criticized for heavily exploiting the region\u2019s\nnatural resources. Yet Beijing insists its relations with Latin America are\nbased on South-South\ncooperation<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alternatively, in addition to these actors, Latin\nAmerican and Caribbean countries are seeking new trade partners, and Turkey is\none of those countries. So far, Turkey has signed\nEconomic and Trade Cooperation Agreements<\/a> with Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, the\nDominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico,\nNicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. If Turkey aims to improve its\neconomic presence in the region, further steps should be taken without imposing\nany prerequisites. For instance, free trade agreements and investment deals could\nbenefit both sides. While Turkey underlines its growing capacity in sectors\nsuch as the defense industry, energy, and technology, Latin American countries\ncould have a new market for their products in Turkey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As part of her multifaceted foreign policy, Turkey has\nutilized soft power and public diplomacy instruments such as culture,\neducation, and media in Latin America. For instance, Turkish Airlines have\nlaunched direct flights<\/a> from \u0130stanbul to numerous Latin American and Caribbean\ncities in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Venezuela, Cuba, etc. The\nMinistry of Culture and Tourism Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency\n(T\u0130KA) operates with two Program Coordination Offices in Latin America (Bogota\nand Mexico City). The Agency has been funding numerous projects\nin the LAC region<\/a>, focusing primarily\non development assistance and humanitarian aid. In the education sector, the Yunus\nEmre Institution in Mexico City and the Turkish Maarif Foundation\u2019s schools in\nBogota and Caracas are helping Turkey to promote its presence in the region. In\nthe media sector, TRT External Services Department launched TRT Espa\u00f1ol<\/em>\nand TRT Portugu\u00eas<\/em>, while Anadolu Agency opened an office in Bogota<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, in August 2022 Ministry of Culture and\nTourism Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) announced a\nresearch support program to fund projects in fields such as Latin American\nmigration history, migration sociology, Latin America\u2019s Middle Eastern Diaspora\nentitled \u201cLos Turcos, Migration to Latin America\u201d, reflecting that the\nimmigrants from the Ottoman territory to the Latin American region during the\n1860s until the World War had been called Los Turcos<\/em> by the Latin\nAmerican authorities and people in general. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Similarly, several scientific and academic exchange\nprograms, scholarships, exhibitions, fairs, and conferences are organized by\nvarious public and non-governmental organizations for more people in Latin\nAmerica to have information about Turkey and develop relations in every field. Despite\nthe geographical distance, Turkey is becoming a popular tourism destination for\nLatin American people thanks to Turkish television series and popular figures\nthat create a great interest in the Turkish language and culture. These soft\npower instruments are helpful in terms of promoting Turkey\u2019s rhetoric of\npeaceful and cooperative foreign policy as defined by the Ministry of Foreign\nAffairs as \u201centerprising and humanitarian\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Expanding political, diplomatic, economic, trade,\ncultural, and social relations with Latin American and Caribbean countries\nwould be fruitful in many areas of Turkey\u2019s foreign policy. Winning these\ncountries’ support (and vote, if necessary) could make Turkey a powerful player\nin endorsing her interests in the United Nations and other international\norganizations. For instance, most Latin American countries, like Turkey,\nalready support Palestinian arguments in terms of issues such as the Palestine-Israeli\nconflict. Similarly, suppose Turkey improves its relations with Latin American\ncountries such as Argentina and Uruguay, where they have a significant Armenian\npopulation. In that case, it could also reflect on its relations with Armenia. Moreover,\nas part of her soft power in the region, Turkey could highlight her historical\nconnection with Latin American people by creating comprehensive social and\ncultural bonds with Los Turcos<\/em>.While Turkey advocates for more\nbalanced representation in the United Nations, convincing Latin American and Caribbean\ncountries could be advantageous. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consequently, Turkey needs to underline her position\nas an equal partner to move relations further. Since Turkey has no colonial\nhistory in the region, governments and people are not skeptical of Turkey\u2019s\ngoal of increasing its presence in the region. On the contrary, they are eager\nto improve their relations with Turkey. Since Turkey and Latin America, and the\nCaribbean countries have no direct conflicts, it would be easier to establish a\ndialogue on international issues with mutual respect and understanding. Therefore,\nwith such cooperation, they could redefine the role and position of developing\nstates as significant actors in the international system and defend their\ncommon interests.  <\/strong>
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[1]<\/a>The\npresidents and ministers of Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador,\nMexico, Costa Rica visited Turkey, while, then Turkish Prime Minister Recep\nTayyip Erdo\u011fan and state, foreign, trade, and defense ministers visited the\nregion. President Erdo\u011fan visited Mexico, Colombia, and Cuba in February 2015\nand Chile, Peru, and Ecuador in the beginning of 2016.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

[2]<\/a>\nAs of September 2022, Turkey has Embassies in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil,\nChile, Colombia, Costa Rica (accredited to Nicaragua), Cuba (accredited to the\nBahamas and Jamaica), the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala\n(accredited to Honduras and Belize), Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay,\nand Venezuela. These countries, except for Uruguay, have their\nembassies in Ankara<\/a>. Uruguay has General Consulate in \u0130stanbul and\nannounced its intention to open an embassy in Ankara. Turkey has an Embassy in\nTrinidad and Tobago which is accredited to Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Saint\nLucia, Saint Vincent and Grenadines, and Suriname.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Assoc. Prof. Ceren Uysal O\u011fuz, Akdeniz \u00dcniversitesi <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Ceren Uysal O\u011fuz, graduated from Marmara University, Department of International Relations. She completed two master’s degrees in the field of European Union at Marmara University European Community Institute, then at Universit\u00e0 Cattolica del Sacro Cuore Milano Italy with a Jean Monnet Scholarship. She completed her doctorate at Akdeniz University, Department of Public Administration with her thesis on climate change. She is a co-editor of the book \u201cLatin America in the 21st Century: Politics-Economy-Society\u201d and has various publications on Latin America, climate change, environmental politics, and the European Union. She has been working as an associate professor at Akdeniz University, Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Department of International Relations. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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To cite this work:<\/strong>  Ceren Uysal O\u011fuz, \u201cTurkey and Latin America: New Era of Opportunities, Panorama, Online, 31 October 2022, https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/blog\/2022\/10\/31\/cu\/<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This article has been prepared with the support provided to the International Relations Council<\/a> and the Global Academy<\/a> by the Heinrich B\u00f6ll Stiftung Association Turkey Representative within the scope of the project titled ‘Foreign Policy for the 21st Century; Peaceful, Equitable, and Dynamic Turkey’.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Copyright@UIKPanorama. All on-line and print rights reserved. Opinions expressed in works published by the Panorama belongs to the authors alone unless otherwise stated, and do not imply endorsement by the IRCT, Global Academy, or the Editors\/Editorial Board of Panorama.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With the end of the Cold War, when Turkey intended to develop a more diverse foreign policy, Latin America and the Caribbean became a region of interest regarding diplomatic, economic, and cultural relations. To this end, \u201cthe Action Plan for Latin America and the Caribbean\u201d was adopted in 1998. However, during that period, the aim […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":183,"featured_media":9627,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[510,486,508,505],"tags":[656,563,713,584,650],"class_list":["post-11491","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-100-years-of-the-republic","category-opinion","category-turkey","category-world","tag-english","tag-foreign-policy-and-diplomacy","tag-heinrich-boll-foundation","tag-latin-america","tag-turkiye"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11491","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/183"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11491"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11491\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9627"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11491"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11491"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalpanorama.org\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11491"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}