Erdogan kicks off TRT World Forum's fifth edition

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has opened the two-day TRT World Forum 2021.

The theme of this year’s event is "Power and Paradox: Understanding Grand Strategy in the 21st Century".

Speaking at the opening ceremony through a video message on Tuesday, Erdogan expressed hope that the TRT World Forum will be beneficial for the world, the region and the country.

He expressed his gratitude to all the scientists, media and politicians who will contribute to the Forum, and congratulated the TRT management and the institutions and organisations that support the programme.

Earlier, the opening ceremony was also addressed by Turkey's Communications Director Fahrettin Altun and TRT Director General Mehmet Zahid Sobaci.

Over a dozen public sessions

During the event, experts will virtually attend a total of 16 public sessions and expert roundtables on a variety of issues.

The sessions and discussions featured this year include: "The Future of Sovereignty in an Interdependent World", "Towards New Realignments in the Middle East: The Future of Turkish-Arab Relations", "Climate and Global Health Crises as Strategic Threats", "Europe’s Grand Strategy after Brexit: Old Challenges and New Realities", and "Global Governance and the Challenges and Opportunities of Multipolarity".

The Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan will also be discussed in an expert roundtable titled "The Taliban Returns: Lessons Learned and Lost".

The speakers will include Ahmed Mohammed Al-Meraikhi, special adviser to the UN secretary-general; Prince El Hassan bin Talal, former Crown Prince of Jordan; Richard Falk, professor emeritus of international law at Princeton University; Andreas Wimmer, professor of sociology and political philosophy at Columbia University; Tarik M. Yousef, director of the Brookings Doha Center; and Diane Karusisi, CEO of BK Group, the largest financial services group in Rwanda.

Professor Jonathan Patz, the health and the environment director of Global Health Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will also be among the speakers, along with CyberPeace Institute’s Chief Executive Officer Stephane Duguin, Director of the Geneva Center for Security Policy (GCSP) Thomas Greminger, Director of the Centre for European Reform Charles Grant and President of Observer Research Foundation Samir Saran.

FOR MORE: TRT World Forum 2021