Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs, who spoke at the programme “Türkiye Söyleşileri” (“Turkey Talks”) organized under the “International Student Academy” by the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) drew attention to the great interest in studying in Turkey and said “We hope for an increase in the number of students who come to Turkey in the upcoming years.”

The 12^th course of the programme “Türkiye Söyleşileri” held under the project “International Student Academy” by the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) hosted Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu. International students studying at bachelor’s, master’s and doctorate levels at various universities in Turkey participated in the programme which took place in the conference hall of the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB) in Ankara. Minister Çavuşoğlu answered the questions of students following the programme.

Çavuşoğlu thanked students who are from different parts of the world for preferring to study in Turkey and said “We hope that the number of students who come to Turkey will increase in the upcoming years. Because in all countries we visit, we witness a great interest in studying in Turkey.” Stating that there are about 150 thousand international students who are studying in Turkey, Minister Çavuşoğlu expressed how happy they are about this. Underlining that he also studied abroad, Çavuşoğlu told students about the contributions he benefited from by receiving education in New York and London.

TURKEY IS THE MOST SENSITIVE COUNTRY TO THE PROBLEMS OF LESS DEVELOPED COUNTRIES

Stating that they are well aware of the problems of the least developed countries, Çavuşoğlu said that the UN prefers Turkey for transferring technology to the least developed countries because Turkey is the most sensitive country to the problems of those countries. Çavuşoğlu noted that Turkey ranks first in the world for its humanitarian aids in proportion to its national income and said: “You cannot be persistent or respectable if you ignore the humanitarian aspect of foreign policy.”

Noting that the soft power is at work with all of its elements in the foreign policy of Turkey, Çavuşoğlu said that Turkey has been showing its soft power to the entire world through YTB. Minister Çavuşoğlu stated, “We have been implementing development projects across the world through TIKA (Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency). Again, wherever a disaster occurs, we are the first country to go there with AFAD (Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Authority). We always lend a helping hand to those in need across the world and provide hot meal and healthcare services through our Red Crescent. Today the foreign policy areas have expanded so much that our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and parliament members cannot outreach all. Today our soft powers are at work with all of its elements in our foreign policy. And YTB is the leading one. We are showing the soft power of Turkey to the entire world through YTB.”

WE FEEL THE PROBLEMS OF INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

Stating that YTB has undertaken the international student mobility in Turkey since 2011, YTB President Abdullah Eren noted, “We have 17 thousand international students from more than 170 countries across the world who are under Türkiye Scholarships. We embrace all international students studying in Turkey whether they are our scholars or not, and try to feel all their problems.” Noting that Turkey has an important mission in the international conjuncture in recent years, President Eren said, “Turkey has a highly valuable standing and a powerful vision that it takes in the international arena. You, our volunteer ambassadors, will tell about this vision of Turkey when you return to your country. It is quite important that this vision is conveyed directly by you.”

President Eren made a call for international students and addressed them by saying, “It is in our hands to improve the international student quality of Turkey; please study hard, follow up your courses and get good grades.”