Turkic states are assessing the feasibility of passport-free travel between countries using national ID cards, Kürşad Zorlu, the Deputy Chairman of Türkiye’s ruling AK Party said on Saturday.
Zorlu, who is also the party’s lead for relations with Turkic States, told the Turkic World Youth Meeting taking place in Kocaeli province, northwestern Türkiye, that countries were trying to prepare the foundations for such an initiative.
“Currently, we travel with our passports. We are trying to lay the groundwork and develop the conditions to see if we can travel with our identity cards,” he said.
The initiative would include the five members of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS): Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Türkiye and Uzbekistan.
Hungary, Turkmenistan and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which have observer status within the group, are not understood to be included in the scheme.
Citizens of Türkiye and Azerbaijan can already travel between the two countries passport-free, using biometric identity cards.
Kazakh and Kyrgz citizens can also travel between each other’s countries using just their national identity cards.
Zorlu’s remarks at the conference on Saturday is the latest sign that the initiative remains high on OTS’s list of priorities.
OTS Secretary General Kubanychbek Omuraliev told Azerbaijani press agency APA in September that passport-free travel between countries was “on our agenda.”
In April, Zorlu said that free movement was critical to ensure the economic and social integration of the Turkic world.
The Turkic World Youth Meeting runs until Sunday. It is organised by the OTC, which focuses on fostering economic, political and economic cooperation within Turkic-speaking countries.
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