Conservative Friends of Turkey (CFT) is a group associated with the British
Conservative Party. Its fundamental objective is given as promoting links between
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula in ...
and the Conservative Party at all levels, by working with local and national party organisations, business groups and academia. Other aims include fostering enhanced bilateral trade relationships and increasing awareness of the Conservative Party within the Turkish-speaking communities in the UK. The group also lobbies in favour of
Turkish membership of
the EU and highlights Turkey's importance as an ally of the UK. CFT lists the following activities to achieve these aims: by providing information on Turkey through regular briefings and newsletters; by organising meetings and events in Britain, Turkey and Belgium; and by arranging British parliamentary delegations to Turkey.
Membership
CFT counts 21 MPs, 4 peers and 2 MEPs among its founder
Founder Members - Conservative Friends of Turkey
The three original founding members of the organisation were Councillor Ertan Hurer and Dr Onur Cetin, both of Turkish ancestry living in the UK and Dr Riza Kadilar.
Activities
Recent CFT activities include: the official launch with
Foreign Secretary Rt Hon William Hague MP, launch of the Brussels branch with
Daniel Hannan MEP and
Geoffrey Van Orden OBE MEP, a joint dinner with
Cities of London and Westminster Conservative Association and a joint reception with
Westminster North Conservative Association hosting
Defence Secretary
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...
Rt Hon Dr Liam Fox MP.
Following the UK referendum on EU membership the CFT has been active in lobbying the Conservative Government to foster a closer relationship with Turkey and held a fringe meeting at the 2016 Party Conference titled "Turkey and the EU, building bridges post Brexit".
The CFT takes great care not to criticise Turkey. It has made no comment on Turkish actions in Syria, Libya, Kurdistan and its provocations against Greece and Cyprus. CFT Cofounder Daniel Hannan tweeted that he was happier to see Aghia Sophia in Istanbul used as a mosque than as a museum.
Newsletter
CFT started publishing a monthly newsletter in early 2009, an archive of past newsletters can be found on the official websit
Conservative Friends of Turkey
See also
*
List of organisations associated with the Conservative Party (UK)
References
External links
Conservative Friends of Turkey– Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Conservative Friends Of Turkey
Organisations associated with the Conservative Party (UK)
Turkey–European Union relations
Turkey–United Kingdom relations