16.01.2026 22:44
In an evaluation regarding the International Ayder Forum, Prof. Dr. Cemal Zehir, a faculty member at Yıldız Technical University, emphasized that Ayder is rapidly progressing towards becoming a competitor to Davos as an international center where discussions on global energy policies, energy security, and strategic power take place. Zehir also addressed Turkey's increasing geopolitical role as an energy corridor and the transformation of energy into economic and political power.
The world-famous tourism center of Rize, Ayder Plateau, is hosting the 2nd International Ayder Forum this year.
Prof. Dr. Cemal Zehir, a faculty member of the Department of Business Administration at Yıldız Technical University (YTÜ) Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, evaluated the organization where global energy policies, artificial intelligence technologies, and sustainable energy strategies were discussed, in an interview with Melis Yaşar from Haberler.com.
"AYDER IS SLOWLY BECOMING A RIVAL TO DAVOS"
Zehir stated: "The International Ayder Forum is truly one of the largest international organizations held in Rize. In this Ayder Forum, which is also a member of the Black Sea Cooperation Organization, academics, businessmen, parliamentarians, ministers, and representatives from the Black Sea Region, the European Parliament, Romania, Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan, and even India participated; including Turkey. It went very well, I mean, once.
Ayder is really slowly becoming a rival to Davos. Not just a rival, we are describing it as surpassing Davos. We are the Turkish society. God willing, it will be beautiful, it is going well. The halls were full, the participation was very good, it was high. The most relevant people from Turkey were here. Our minister was here, or rather, our ministers were here. Our politicians, parliamentarians from different parties, and our party leaders were here. It went well, I mean.
"THE BEST ACADEMICS IN THE FIELD OF ENERGY WERE HERE"
Our session was, of course, an international scientific session. There were four academics from Russia. There was one from St. Petersburg University, one from Moscow University, and one from the Russian State University. In addition, there was one from Azerbaijan State Economic University. There was one from Baku State University. The Chairman of the Energy Commission of the Azerbaijani Parliament was present in our session. There was a former Duma member, a member of the Russian Parliament among the speakers. The best academics in the field of energy were here. One of the speakers was the Vice President of the 2021 World Energy Summit, and there was Dimitri Bey, the Vice-Rector of St. Petersburg University.
So it was a serious session. The main topic of our session was energy strategies and energy security in the Black Sea Region and the Eurasian Region. The title of my speech as a moderator was 'how did energy become a strategic power?'
THE HISTORICAL TRANSFORMATION OF ENERGY INTO STRATEGIC POWER
I am a professor of competitive strategy, and when we look at the strategic emergence of energy, it actually starts with coal. In the 1700s, coal began to become a power source by being used in steam engines for the first time. Thus, steam engines began to accelerate ships. Those who possessed them started to advance in wars.
Thus, the main goal of World War I and II was to possess oil and oil resources. The reason Westerners attacked the Ottoman Empire and us was that we owned almost all of the known oil reserves in the world at that time. The geography I refer to as the Ottoman Empire, today’s Middle East, still possesses more than 55% of the world's oil today.
That is, 19% is in present-day Saudi Arabia, linked to the Ottoman Empire. 11% is in Iraq, linked to the Ottoman Empire. 9% is in Kuwait, linked to the Ottoman Empire. These are our provinces. Or 4% to 5% in Algeria and Libya is linked. The oil in Syria is again part of the Ottoman geography, and the oil in parts of Iran is also linked to the Ottoman Empire. It was in such a state. That’s why they attacked us, to gain control over oil.
Oil began to accumulate power, to gain it. Later, we see that oil became a political power. For example, after the Arab-Israeli War in 1970, the Saudi King applied an oil embargo on the West, thus becoming a political power for the first time, and the Westerners found themselves in a really difficult situation due to the oil embargo.
NATURAL GAS AND RUSSIA'S ENERGY POLICY
Later, we see that natural gas came into play. After the dissolution of the Soviets in 1991, Western countries turned to natural gas for use in their countries, and the Russians emerged as the largest natural gas supplier. Even today, more than 50% of the natural gas needs of most European countries are provided by the Russians, and we see that the Russian Federation has started to use energy as a political power against European countries.
In terms of natural gas, and even today, Western countries, that is, during the Ukraine-Russia War, stand behind Ukraine, but the reason they do not make a serious move against the Russians is; what will they do if the Russians cut off natural gas this winter? They have been trying to make an agreement for four years, trying to get rid of this. Many countries are still more than 50% dependent on Russian natural gas. And they aim to minimize this sustainably only by the end of 2027.
TURKEY'S REGIONAL ENERGY POLITICAL POWER
So power; energy has now become an economic, political, and strategic power. This evolution is what makes our topic this. In Turkey, the energy corridor is becoming a country that holds this power as a transit country that manages energy, not just selling energy.
This conflict between Russia and the West will ensure that Azerbaijani, Kazakh, and Turkmen oil and natural gas reach the Western market and will pass through Turkey. Even the oil from Iraq will be sold to the West through Turkey, via the Yumurtalık line, and we see that Turkey has become a political power managing an energy policy, holding the valve as a transit country, and this will increasingly grow.