INITIATIVES AND ACTIVITIES OF TURKEY AS THE CHAIR OF THE ISLAMIC SUMMIT

The 13^th Islamic Summit was held on 10-15 April 2016 in Istanbul was held with the participation of 54 countries of which 24 were represented by Presidents, Prime Ministers and Speakers of the Parliament. In the Summit, a Final Communiqué, the Istanbul Declaration, Palestine and Al-Quds Cause Resolution and OIC 2025 Programme of Action were adopted.

In addition to 13^th Summit, Turkey hosted two Extraordinary Islamic Summits regarding the Palestinian Cause and the statue of Al-Quds, upon the call of H.E. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

The 6^th Extraordinary Islamic Summit, held in 14 December 2018, was in response to the decision of the US government to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and moving its Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The Extraordinary Summit adopted the Istanbul Declaration and a Final Communiqué whereas Extraordinary Council of Foreign Ministers adopted a Resolution.

The 7^th Extraordinary Islamic Summit was held on 18 May 2018 in Istanbul, in response to the Israel’s excessive use of force against unarmed Palestinians who were protesting the transfer of the US Embassy to Jerusalem. The Summit, attended by 12 Presidents and Heads of Government, two Vice President and two Vice Prime Minister adopted a Final Communiqué.

During its Chairmanship, Turkey also hosted the 3^rd Session of the Islamic Conference of Ministers of Water on 17-19 May 2016, the 3^rd
Session of the Islamic Conference of Ministers of Youth and Sport on 5-7 October 2016, and the 6^th

Session of the Ministerial Conference on the Role of Women in the Development of OIC Member States on1-3 November 2016.

The 33^rd Session of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (COMCEC), chaired by H.E. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was held on 20-23 November 2017 in Istanbul, and the First Meeting of the


WomenConsultative
Council was held on 18 May 2017 in Istanbul.

The Statute of the OIC Centre for Police Cooperation and Coordination, another initiative of Turkey, was finalized after three meetings of the Legal and Security Experts Group and adopted at the 45th CFM on 5-6 May 2018.

As part of the efforts of Turkey to enhance the role and capacity of the OIC in the field of mediation, the First OIC Member States Conference on Mediation was held on 21 November 2017 in Istanbul. A Resolution, the first one in the field of mediation was proposed by Turkey and adopted at the 45^th


CFM. Another initiative of Turkey in this field, the OIC Contact Group of Friends of Mediation was also established at the 45^th

CFM.

Upon the proposal of H.E. President Erdoğan the Contact Group of European Muslims was established at the 13^th
Islamic Summit and held its first meeting during the 43^rd
CFM on October 2016, Tashkent.

Within the context of the comprehensive reform process of OIC, which was launched on the basis of a meeting between H.E. Foreign Minister Mevlüt Cavuşoğlu and the Foreign Minister of Malaysia and with the recommendation of the OIC Secretary General, the First Brainstorming Meeting is envisaged to be held during the Chairmanship of Turkey.

As a part of this process, the Intergovernmental Experts Group (IGEG), which was established pursuant to the relevant resolution
adopted at the 44^th CFM to review the OIC Personnel Regulations, held two meetings. Likewise, the Expert Group established to review the Rules of Procedure of the CFM held two meetings in this term.