Forward Thinking host roundtable discussion with the Turkish Minister of Tourism and Culture, 8th November 2017

Forward Thinking, in co-operation with the Embassy of Turkey in London hosted a roundtable event with Dr. Numan Kurtulmuş, the Minister of Culture and Tourism for the Republic of Turkey. 

Dr Kurtulmuş’ political career began in 1998 when he became Istanbul Provincial Head and a member of General Administrative Board of the Virtue Party. Shortly after the closure of Virtue Party in 2001, he joined the Felicity Party, and served as the Chair from 2008 to 2010.  He was the founding Chair of People’s Voice Party from November 1, 2010 to September 19, 2012 when the party dissolved itself to join the Justice and Development Party. Within the ruling Justice and Development Party, he assumed the office of Deputy Chairman for Economic Affairs by August 2014. Dr Kurtulmuş joined the 62nd Government of Republic of Turkey on 29 August 2014 as the Deputy Prime Minister, and served with the same capacity in the 63rd, 64th and 65th Cabinets. He has served as the Ministry of Culture and Tourism since July 20, 2017. 

The event, titled  “Opportunities and challenges facing the Republic of Turkey and the United Kingdom,” provided an important opportunity to analyse the challenges that confront the two countries in Europe and the MENA region and how these might be better addressed. Discussions at the event explored several themes including how to respond to the shared threat of terrorism, the implications of the failed coup attempt in 2016 for Turkish society, and recent regional developments including the Kurdish referendum in Iraq.