Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy: Examples from Europe, the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean

The report analyzes how the AKP government has shifted Turkish foreign policy toward a more proactive, ideologically driven approach that leverages historical, cultural, and religious ties to expand regional influence. It examines the role of institutions like the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) and the Diyanet in managing these relations. Through case studies in Bulgaria, Germany, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Cyprus, and Palestine, the document illustrates how this 'kin-state' politics often leads to the instrumentalization of religion, the exportation of domestic political conflicts, and tensions with host countries, while sometimes being perceived by the target communities as paternalistic or colonizing.

• Since 2002, the AKP has shifted Turkish foreign policy toward a 'New Turkey' identity, moving from a secular-republican focus to an Islamic-Turkish synthesis that emphasizes historical and cultural links to 'kin communities' (akraba topluluklar) across Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Middle East.
• Turkey utilizes the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) and the Diyanet (Presidency of Religious Affairs) as primary tools for diaspora governance and the projection of soft power, often using them to promote Turkish nationalism and Islamic values abroad.
• In Bulgaria, Turkey's use of the Diyanet to support the Muslim minority has created ambivalence; while providing financial aid, it has also led to the deportation of officials accused of meddling in domestic politics and the exportation of Turkey's internal conflict with the Gülen Movement.
• Turkey's diaspora policy in Germany has faced an 'invisible red line,' where the state's attempts to mobilize loyalists and monitor dissidents—including allegations of imams spying on citizens—have strained diplomatic relations and fueled debates over 'dual loyalties' and integration failure.
• In Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey's influence is exercised primarily through economic investment, cultural heritage restoration via TIKA, and education, though local actors often negotiate this presence to serve their own goals, and some perceive the relationship as an ongoing 'self/othering' process.
• Turkish policy toward the Muslim minority in Greece has shifted from a conciliatory approach in the early AKP years to a more assertive kin-state ideology, with President Erdoğan calling for the minority to 'defend their Turkish identity' and criticizing the appointment of muftis by the Greek state.
• The relationship between Turkey and Turkish Cypriots has evolved from a 'national cause' to a paternalistic protectorate, where Turkish Cypriots increasingly perceive Turkey's economic and religious interventions as colonizing or exploitative.
• Turkey's relations with Palestine are a central pillar of its 'New Turkey' identity, utilizing TIKA and the Yunus Emre Institute to provide extensive humanitarian aid, education, and infrastructure projects to position Turkey as a leader of the global Muslim community.
• The report concludes that the AKP's diaspora and kin policies are marked by a combination of political Islam and increasing authoritarianism, which often exports domestic polarization to the target communities and risks undermining Turkey's long-term legitimacy abroad.

APA

Hatay, M., & Tziarras, Z. (2019). Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy: Examples from Europe, the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean. Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/6dc69359-d100-4767-8161-83f7c36226e1/10 2019 Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Hatay, Mete, and Zenonas Tziarras. Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy: Examples from Europe, the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean. Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2019. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/6dc69359-d100-4767-8161-83f7c36226e1/10 2019 Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Hatay |first1=Mete |last2=Tziarras |first2=Zenonas |title=Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy: Examples from Europe, the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=October 2019 |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/6dc69359-d100-4767-8161-83f7c36226e1/10 2019 Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{hatay2019kinship, author = {Hatay, Mete and Tziarras, Zenonas}, title = {{Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy: Examples from Europe, the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2019}, month = oct, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/6dc69359-d100-4767-8161-83f7c36226e1/10 2019 Kinship and Diasporas in Turkish Foreign Policy.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }