Author Archives: Ali Tuygan

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About Ali Tuygan

Ali Tuygan is a graduate of the Faculty of Political Sciences of Ankara University. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in January 1967. Between various positions in Ankara, he served at the Turkish Embassy in Brussels, NATO International Staff, Turkish Embassies in Washington and Baghdad, and the Turkish Delegation to NATO. From 1986 to 1989 he was the Principal Private Secretary to the President of the Republic. He then served as ambassador to Ottawa, Riyadh, and Athens. In 1997 he was honored with a decoration by the Italian President. Between these assignments abroad he served twice as Deputy Undersecretary for Political Affairs. In 2004 he was appointed Undersecretary where he remained until the end of 2006 before going to his last foreign assignment as Ambassador to UNESCO. He retired in 2009. In April 2013 he published a book entitled “Gönüllü Diplomat, Dışişlerinde Kırk Yıl” (“Diplomat by Choice, Forty Years in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs”) in which he elaborated on the diplomatic profession and the main issues on the global agenda. He has published articles in Turkish periodicals and newspapers.

Türkiye Must Have a Foreign Policy Review

October 3, 2024 Ankara’s foreign policy of the past fifteen years is a story of extreme rhetoric, defiance, and inconsistencies. Every country can make reasonable adjustments to its foreign policy. But if U-turns become a pattern, this signals a lack … Continue reading

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Escalation in the Middle East

September 30, 2024 Last week, world leaders, though not all, gathered in New York to engage in the annual high-level General Assembly debate to “explore solutions to intertwined global challenges to advance peace, security, and sustainable development” to use the … Continue reading

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Blasts in Lebanon

September 20, 2024 At least 37 people were killed and thousands more injured, many seriously, when pagers and walkie-talkies, used by Hezbollah, exploded across Lebanon on Tuesday and Wednesday. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied involvement in the operation. Israeli … Continue reading

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Türkiye’s Support for Ukraine and Membership in BRICS

September 16, 2024 The year 2023 was a tough one for Ukraine. Its spring offensive failed. The US military aid started coming after months of delay. Mobilization became unpopular in Ukrainian society. In brief, it became increasingly clear that a … Continue reading

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“Normalizing” Relations between Türkiye and Syria

September 2, 2024 Hafez al-Assad was the 18th president of Syria from 1971 until he died in 2000. He was the number one regional enemy of Türkiye. Starting in the mid-1980s, Syria provided the PKK and its leader Ocalan with … Continue reading

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A Brief Story of the Gaza Ceasefire Talks

August 23, 2024 The October 7 Hamas onslaught was a shock to Israel, but also to Washington because with the Abraham Accords, it seemed that the US could put its Middle East troubles behind and focus on its strategic competition … Continue reading

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Gaza Ceasefire Talks Should No Longer Be a Distraction

August 19, 2024 Since the Hamas onslaught of October 7, world attention has essentially focused on two aspects of the war in Gaza. First, the ferocity of the IDF operations that have caused immense loss of civilian life and devastation, … Continue reading

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Where to Turkish-Israeli Relations?

August 5, 2023 In 1492, the Ottoman Empire, the predecessor of Atatürk’s modern Türkiye, opened its doors to Jews after they had been expelled from Spain. Türkiye became the first Muslim-majority country to recognize Israel as an independent state in … Continue reading

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Prime Minister Netanyahu Visits a Turbulent US

July 28, 2024 Last Wednesday, Prime Minister Netanyahu addressed the US Congress for the fourth time, the most of any foreign leader in history. Winston Churchill had addressed Congress only three times. Mr. Netanyahu’s previous address to Congress was in … Continue reading

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Gaza Becoming Inhabitable Land

July 22, 2024 During the past weeks, developments of global public interest somehow diverted attention away from the war in Gaza until the Israeli strikes on Al-Mawasi, an area in southern Gaza where tens of thousands of Palestinians had fled … Continue reading

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