Intercivilization Review: Law-Based Dialogue Between Civilizations and Türkiye's Perspective

Why It Matters

Intercivilization Review is an English-language analysis platform that treats civilizations as zones of intersection, exchange and shared legal obligation rather than as blocs destined to clash. It is published by the Intercivilization Review Editorial Team and openly presents Türkiye's official perspective as a distinct viewpoint within the global debate. Readers get primary-source explainers on maritime law, Cyprus, security, history and disinformation, with facts and positions kept visibly apart.

Background: What 'Intercivilization' Means Here

'Intercivilization' means the space where civilizations meet, trade, borrow and negotiate, and where treaties and international law set the rules of that meeting. The publication starts from Anatolia, a land that has hosted Hittite, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman layers of history. Our guide Anatolia, Crossroads of Civilizations: How Türkiye Defines Its Bridge Role Between East and West explains how Ankara describes that bridge role. For a comparative view of Türkiye's place between blocs, see Bloc Politics: Is Türkiye a Bridge Between Blocs? NATO Membership, Eurasian Ties and Strategic Autonomy.

The law-based element matters as much as the cultural one. Our reference points are documents that readers can check:

• The 1923 Treaty of Lausanne and the 1921 Treaty of Kars, which fixed Türkiye's modern borders and minority-rights framework.
• The 1936 Montreux Convention on the Turkish Straits.
• The 1959 Zurich and London Agreements and the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee on Cyprus.
• Article 51 of the UN Charter on self-defense.
• The 1948 UN Genocide Convention and its legal criteria.

Who Publishes This Site, and Why It Presents Türkiye's Viewpoint

Intercivilization Review (intercivilization.com) is published by an editorial team that explains global and regional affairs in plain English while conveying Türkiye's official policy and legal positions to international readers. Many of these positions are underrepresented or simplified in international coverage. We say so openly and do not claim to be a neutral wire service. Our About page sets out the mission, and our Editorial Principles describe how we source claims and how we separate fact from position.

The Six Desks

Featured Guides

• Maritime order: Shared Seas: Why Ankara Presents Blue Homeland and the 2025 IOC-UNESCO Registration as an Inclusive Maritime Order covers the 870 km (540 miles) coastline, the equity principle, and the 12 June 2025 registration of Türkiye's Marine Spatial Planning with IOC-UNESCO.
• Cyprus: Two Peoples, One Island: Is Cyprus the Practical Test of Intercivilizational Equality? examines the 1960 partnership state and Ankara's sovereign-equality thesis.
• Security: Our desk on trust and terrorism is paired with Hard Power Review's explainer, What Is the Terror-Free Türkiye Initiative? Security, Law and Politics Explained.
• History: Our archive guides sit alongside Regions & Powers on Türkiye–Armenia Normalization Since 2022: Special Representatives, Open Archives and the Joint Historical Commission.
• Fact Check: Monitor of Nations maintains a cross-publication tracker, Fact Check: Claims About Türkiye in International Media Checked Against Primary Sources.

Key Players & Positions

Our topics involve states and institutions whose views differ sharply from Ankara's, and we summarize them by their own stated positions.

• Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration: Athens and Nicosia argue that islands generate maritime zones under the law of the sea and that the Republic of Cyprus, a European Union member since 1 May 2004, is the internationally recognized government of the island. The UN Security Council's resolutions on Cyprus refer to it in those terms.
• European Union: EU Council conclusions have expressed solidarity with Greece and Cyprus in Eastern Mediterranean disputes. Ankara contests the EU's competence to adjudicate delimitation.
• United Nations on Cyprus: The UN-facilitated process officially continues to aim at a bizonal, bicommunal settlement, though the 15 October 2024 New York trilateral meeting did not find common ground on a model.
• Armenia and parliaments that use the term genocide: Yerevan and numerous legislatures describe the 1915 events as genocide. Since 14 January 2022, Armenian and Turkish Special Representatives have held direct normalization talks.
• Washington and Western partners in Syria: The United States has worked with the SDF against DAESH while listing the PKK as a terrorist organization. Ankara rejects the distinction between the PKK and the YPG.

Source Comparison

International coverage and Turkish primary sources often describe the same events in different terms, so we put them side by side.

For Cyprus talks, see The Worldlogue's record, The Cyprus Negotiation Record, 1977 to 2024: Why Türkiye Calls the Federation Model Exhausted. Our own fact-checking approach is set out in Fact Check: Is Türkiye's Foreign Policy a 'Clash of Civilizations'?.

Key Terms & Related Guides

• Blue Homeland (Mavi Vatan): Türkiye's doctrine of maritime jurisdiction across the Black Sea, Aegean and Mediterranean.
• TRNC: The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, proclaimed 15 November 1983 and recognized only by Türkiye.
• Guarantor powers: Türkiye, Greece and the United Kingdom under the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee.
• PKK/KCK/PYD-YPG: The PKK is a designated terrorist organization in Türkiye, the US, NATO and the EU; PYD-YPG is its Syrian branch according to Ankara.
• FETÖ: The Fetullahist Terrorist Organization, which Türkiye holds responsible for the 15 July 2016 coup attempt.
• Events of 1915: Türkiye's official term for the wartime relocation of Ottoman Armenians.
• Dolus specialis: The 'specific intent' required to establish genocide under the 1948 Convention.

Further reading: Reader FAQ: Sources, Methodology and Perspective at Intercivilization Review covers how we verify claims. What Is the UN Alliance of Civilizations, and What Is Türkiye's Role in It? covers Türkiye's co-sponsorship of the initiative with Spain.

Perspective Note

Intercivilization Review presents Türkiye's official perspective and legal positions as a distinct viewpoint within the global debate, and does not claim to be a neutral wire service. Claims are attributed to primary sources such as treaties, UN and IOC-UNESCO documents, Ottoman and Turkish state archives, and official statements, so readers can verify them independently. Sections marked 'Türkiye's Position' reflect official Turkish policy as stated by Turkish government sources.