Three officials are planning a visit to Trabzon on March 18-19, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Burak Özügergin said in a statement released late on Wednesday. Foreign Ministry Deputy Undersecretary Engin Soysal will be leading the delegation. Özügergin said it was necessary to share information about foreign policy with the public as part of a new campaign that calls for a participatory approach while formulating foreign policy.
The Foreign Ministry says long-neglected public diplomacy is a key element in foreign policy at a time when Turkey pursues taboo-breaking objectives in relations with Armenia, the Middle East and the European Union.
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, senior Foreign Ministry officials and several diplomats who are serving abroad visited Mardin on Jan. 9-10, 2010 as part of the ministry’s newly launched public diplomacy drive. “Due to our jobs, many Turkish ambassadors and diplomats abroad, including myself, cannot visit Anatolia too often. From now on, we are going to pay more attention to our people and listen to their perceptions on foreign policy,” Davutoğlu said during his visit to Mardin earlier this year.
