Cultural and institutional ties
The TRNC Foreign Ministry said in its November 2 announcement that the meeting took place at TÜRKSOY headquarters while Ertuğruloğlu was visiting Türkiye for the 13th Summit of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS). Raev welcomed the minister, who expressed appreciation for the depth and continuity of relations with the International Organisation for Turkic Culture.
TÜRKSOY lists the TRNC as an observer member, alongside Gagauzia in Moldova and six autonomous republics of the Russian Federation: Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, Altai, Sakha (Yakutia), Tyva and Khakassia.
The TRNC also holds observer membership in the OTS. In a September 26, 2026, address to the organization's informal Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in New York, Ertuğruloğlu said it had joined at the Samarkand Summit in November 2022.
In that address, he also described the TRNC's regular participation in Turkic Academy activities since becoming an observer member in November 2025. He said preparations were underway to host an event titled "Turkic Economies Report 2025" in Lefkoşa in October 2026.
Türkiye hosts the OTS summit
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan chaired the October 29-30, 2026, summit in Ankara, which Türkiye hosted under the theme "The Turkic Century: Unity in Language, Thought and Action".
Ahead of the gathering, a statement reported by Hürriyet Daily News said Türkiye would take over the OTS chairmanship from Azerbaijan. It also said leaders were expected to adopt the Ankara Declaration and additional decisions and documents.
Dialogue forum draws 114 speakers
Following the summit, Ertuğruloğlu also attended the two-day Turkic World Dialogue Forum. Türkiye's Presidency Directorate of Communications organized the October 30-31 event in Ankara on the summit's sidelines.
The forum's theme was "From Ideas to Dialogue, Onwards". Head of Communications Burhanettin Duran and Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz delivered opening remarks, and the program featured 114 speakers from OTS member and observer states as well as other countries.
According to the Directorate of Communications, participants from the TRNC included Famagusta MP and former minister Resmiye Eroğlu Canaltay, Girne MP Dr. Hasan Küçük and İskele MP Yasemi Öztürk. Bayrak Radio and Television Corporation (BRTK) chairman Özdemir Tokel and the TRNC's OTS Elder, Oktay Öksüzoğlu, also took part. Raev spoke at a forum session as well.
