

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul, Turkey, 2019. Photo: EPA-EFE/TURKISH PRESIDENT PRESS OFFICE/ MUSTAFA KAMACI

A Turkish NGO, the Humanitarian Relief Foundation, IHH, which is seen as close to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is calling for the appointment of a special Turkish envoy to the Balkans.

The recommendation comes after the US appointed not one but two special envoys to the region.

President Donald Trump has appointed Matthew Palmer as the US Special Representative to the Western Balkans and Richard Grenell as special envoy for the talks between Serbia and its former province of Kosovo.

“Turkey, with its close relations with the Balkan countries and which sees the Balkans as a strategic region, still does not have any official special representative there,” an analysis written by Emin Emin, a political analyst with IHH, says in a report published on Wednesday.

The analysis recommends the appointment of a special envoy to the region to better promote Turkish policy in the region.

“Despite its shared policies on the Western Balkans with the EU, Turkey is no longer seen as an EU ally but rather as a competitor. This is why Turkey has to review its policies and political strategies regarding the Balkans and be able to reciprocate any step taken by the EU and the US,” the report notes.

The analysis observes that while Turkey has good relations with Russia it is also part of the Western NATO alliance, enabling it to play a mediator role in the Balkans.

The special envoy’s recommended duties would be build better relations with Turkey’s strategic allies in the region, such as Bosnia and Albania, protect the rights of Turkish and Muslim minorities, coordinate the work of Turkish institutions in the Balkans and create new channels in the region to ease ethnic tensions.

The IHH is a humanitarian NGO operating in 135 countries and territories, “establishing a bridge of goodwill stretching from Turkey” to the world, including the Balkans. It is known also for its close ties to the Turkish government.

Turkey has become an increasingly important actor in the Balkans in last two decades, conducting a pro-active foreign and economic policy.

However, Ankara’s role in the region has come under question since its relations with West deteriorated, because of President Erdogan’s increasingly authoritarian rule and controversial rapprochement with Russia.