The size of the worldwide Turkic diaspora is ballooning, Turkey’s culture and tourism minister said on Thursday.

"As soon as Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan -- which we would like to see as members of this momentous formation -- are included, the diaspora of our countries will reach a size not to be ignored worldwide," Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said, adding that the diaspora of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States (TDIK, or Turkic Council), from Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, already numbers nearly 15 million.

Speaking at the third meeting of Ministers and Heads of Institutions in Charge of Diaspora Affairs in Turkey’s capital Ankara, Ersoy said that the member countries will benefit more and more from diaspora activities.

Ersoy stressed that the common values of council member states provide a great potential for the solidarity between them, adding that diasporas constitute an important element of this solidarity.

Turkey eyes stronger educational ties with Kazakhstan Turkey wants to strengthen its educational activities in Kazakhstan in the coming year, according to Turkey’s envoy to the country."In the forthcoming period, in line with the needs of Kazakhstan and Turkish means, we would like to strengthen educational activities and cooperation in Kazakhstan," Ambassador Nevzat Uyanık said on Wednesday.Speaking in a press conference on relations with the Central Asian country, Uyanık said that Turkey and Kazakhstan are two "brotherly countries" which proudly share a common historical and cultural heritage.Japanese envoy praises relations with TurkeyNoting that Turkey has no secondary schools in Kazakhstan, Uyanık said discussions are in progress with Kazakh officials over providing educational services either in public or in private educational institutions based on the Kazakh curriculum.He noted that Hoca Ahmet Yesevi University, co-founded by Turkey and Kazakhstan, is offering education in the southern city of Turkistan.Uyanık also stressed that Turkey is among Kazakhstan’s top trade and foreign direct investment partners, adding: "Last year, our bilateral trade volume exceeded $2.4 billion."Uyanık said that to date Turkish contractors have completed 485 large-scale projects worth $23.4 billion in Kazakhstan, underlining that Turkey's direct investments in Kazakhstan also topped $3.2 billion.

He also said a joint action strategy and action plan to be signed Thursday will be a step forward for protecting expats’ dignity and interests.

Stressing the importance of acting with a common vision and cooperation, Ersoy said: "Promoting the solidarity and cooperation of our citizens has become a vital issue."

Ersoy underlined that Turkey currently has around 6.5 million citizens living in 155 countries around the world, while at the same time Turkish soil is host to some 3.5 million Syrian refugees.

He said the second Turkic Council Diaspora Forum -- scheduled for the next year -- will be hosted by Turkey.

The council was established in 2009 as an international intergovernmental organization, with the overarching aim of promoting comprehensive cooperation among Turkic-speaking states.