In line with the importance Turkey attaches to the peaceful resolution of conflicts and mediation, the fourth Istanbul Conference on Mediation will convene in Istanbul on 30 June 2017 with the theme of “Surge in Diplomacy, Action in Mediation”. The Istanbul Conference on Mediation is being held with the understanding that there is a need to take a comprehensive and holistic approach towards the prevention and resolution of conflicts and that the method of mediation can be used more widely.

Following UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ “Surge in Diplomacy for Peace” agenda that ascribes central role to mediation, the central question at the conference will be the ways of strengthening the role of mediation in different phases of conflicts. Another key question will be the use of mediation in addressing extremist tendencies, such as racism, xenophobia and animosity against Islam, which threaten societal order and entail potential for conflict. The Conference would contribute significantly to the activities of the two “Groups of Friends of Mediation” that Turkey set up and co-chair at the UN and the OSCE.

In addition to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, the UN Secretary General and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Finland and Switzerland, the other co-chairs at the UN and the OSCE, will address the international Istanbul Mediation Conference through video messages. The Conference will be attended by over one hundred practitioners and researchers.