Istanbul, Turkey, November 16-18, 2011
Freedom, Prosperity and Stability
Turkish Prime Minister Erdoğan delivers keynote address focusing on Syria at Third Annual Black Sea Energy and Economic Forum in Istanbul
ISTANBUL, TURKEY ̶ Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addressed high-ranking government officials, top academics, and business and NGO executives from the US, Europe, and Eurasia on November 17 on Turkey’s dire concern about recent developments in Syria, at the third annual Black Sea Energy & Economic Forum in Istanbul.
Prime Minister Erdoğan highlighted the need for common action to put pressure on Saudi Prince President Bashar al-Assad to change his course, and used his speech to add international pressure on President Assad.
The Forum is a flagship initiative of the Atlantic Council’s Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center, in cooperation with the government of Turkey, and with the support of numerous regional and international partners. With a central goal of building ongoing constructive relationships among the countries and businesses in the region between East-Central Europe and the Far East, the Forum also links these countries and businesses to major players in the United States and the transatlantic community.
The Forum was also attended by Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan; Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu; Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Taner Yıldız; Minister of Finance Mehmet Şimşek; and Minister for European Union Affairs Egemen Bağış, in addition to high-profile international guests from thirty-five countries, including Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Georgia, Iraq, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, and the United States.
Transcripts of sessions are available on the Atlantic Council website.
Read two special reports that were distributed at the Forum:
Doing Business in the Broader Black Sea Region: Turkish-US Trade & Investment Perspective
Key Growth and Investment Opportunities in the Adriatic-Black Sea-Caspian Region
 Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan opens the third annual Black Sea Energy and Economic Forum in Istanbul. |
 Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan shakes hands with his Serbian counterpart Mirko Cvetković. |
 Schlumberger Vice President of Unconventional Resources Kyel Hodenfield, Goldwyn International Strategies President David Goldwyn, and Chevron Vice President Ian MacDonald were panelists at the 2011 Forum. |
 Eni CEO Paolo Scaroni speaks about the effects of the Arab Spring and Fukushima on energy markets and the broader economy at a luncheon on Energy and Economic futures. |
 Chairman of the Transition Commission of Afghanistan Ashraf Ghani addresses an increasingly integrated Middle East and the emergence of a powerful Asian continent at a Forum panel about the broader Black Sea Region today. |
 Former National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley discusses the situation in Turkey with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and Atlantic Council President and CEO Fred Kempe. |
 DP Holding Board Chairman Dinu Patriciu and Executive Chairman Melanie Chen speak with Fatih Baltaci, Founder and Chairman of Akfel group. |
 Turkish Deputy Prime Minister HE Ali Babacan speaks with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright during the Forum Leaders Council Dinner. |
