At a time of shifting alliances and emerging power vacuums, Türkiye is seeking to reshape the political map of Eurasia and the Middle East by bringing Syria closer to the Organization of Turkic States (OTS). During this week’s summit of the OTS – which includes Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan – held in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called on member states to deepen engagement with the new administration in Damascus. His remarks mark a strategic turn in Ankara’s regional policy, signaling a push to integrate Syria into the wider Turkic sphere of cooperation and stability.

Erdoğan’s address to fellow leaders carried three central messages. First, he called for a unified OTS response to shared security challenges. Second, he urged members to engage with Syria’s new leadership as part of broader stabilization efforts in the region. Third, he emphasized the importance of strengthening the organization’s coordination with other international alliances.

Among these, the proposal to enhance ties with Damascus stood out as particularly significant. It reflected not only Türkiye’s recalibrated stance toward Syria following years of hostility during the war, but also Ankara’s ambition to align the Turkic world behind a new regional order – one where Türkiye plays a central mediating and strategic role.

During the Syrian conflict, the Central Asian states of the former Soviet Union played an unexpectedly visible role through the Astana peace process. Kazakhstan’s capital, Astana (now again called Nur-Sultan), became a key venue for talks between Türkiye, Iran, and Russia. The process sought to broker a political solution and establish de-escalation zones in Syria.

Kazakhstan earned international credibility as an intermediary due to its balanced relations – maintaining longstanding ties with both the Syrian regime and Moscow, while also engaging constructively with Ankara. However, the collapse of Bashar Assad’s regime earlier this year and the rise of President Ahmad Al-Sharaa’s administration have reshuffled regional expectations.

Many observers speculated that the fall of Assad could push the Central Asian states........

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