Bandung Conference

Bandung Conference (officially the Asian-African Conference) was an international meeting held from 18 to 24 April 1955 in the city of Bandung in Indonesia, bringing together representatives of 29 Asian and African countries that had either gained independence from colonialism or were in the process of doing so. This conference was historically significant as the first major gathering of nations that sought to remain outside the blocs of West and East during the Cold War era.

^{Visual Representing the Conference (Generated by Artificial Intelligence)}

The primary aim of the conference was to unite newly independent Asian and African nations in opposition to colonialism and to form a “third bloc” by maintaining neutrality in the bipolar world. The participating countries sought to determine their own political and economic futures, avoid external pressures, and promote an international system based on mutual respect.

The countries attending the conference included Afghanistan, People's Republic of China, India, Indonesia, Egypt, Türkiye, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Nepal, Laos, Vietnam (with both northern and southern delegations), Ethiopia, Libya, Liberia, Jordan like — a total of 29 Asian and African country place. Israel, Taiwan, South Africa and Korea were not invited.

The leading figures of the conference were Indonesian President Ahmed Sukarno, Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Egyptian Prime Minister Gamal Abdel Nasser, and Chinese delegation head Zhou Enlai. Türkiye was represented by a delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Fatin Rüştü Zorlu.

Fatin Rüştü Zorlu (Anadolu Agency)

The conference adopted a resolution known as the “Bandung Principles”, consisting of ten points. These principles included respect for sovereignty, non-interference in internal affairs, peaceful coexistence, and opposition to racism and colonialism. Additional decisions were taken on the peaceful use of nuclear energy and adopting an anti-Israel stance on the Palestinian issue among other concrete matters.

Türkiye participated in the conference as one of the few NATO members invited, while maintaining a pro-Western bloc orientation. Fatin Rüştü Zorlu argued at the conference that neutrality would strengthen newly independent states and viewed communist expansionism as equally dangerous as colonialism. His proposal was incorporated into the conference document. Türkiye’s stance was criticized by countries such as India, Egypt and China as acting as a Western spokesperson.

The Bandung Conference laid the foundation for the Non-Aligned Movement, which became a balancing force between the Eastern and Western blocs throughout the Cold War. The conference gave voice to the “third world” nations in international relations and played a major role in establishing concepts such as universal human rights and decolonization.

The conference provided moral and strategic support to independence struggles across Africa, accelerating the continent’s decolonization process. It also opened the way for Africa to be heard on international platforms.

Despite its active participation, Türkiye’s relations with non-aligned countries gradually weakened due to Cold War policies, leading to diplomatic tensions with some African and Asian countries, particularly over the Cyprus issue. This situation prevented Türkiye from maintaining a foreign policy aligned with the Non-Aligned Movement in the long term.

The Bandung Conference was a pivotal moment in the reshaping of global power relations in the second half of the 20th century. It marked the first serious emergence of the “Global South” against a Western-centered world order, and its effects continue to be echo today.