About Gazetteer of Nations: Mission, Transparency and Authorship
About Gazetteer of Nations: a gazetteer-style reference explaining world affairs in plain English, with Türkiye's official positions labelled and sourced.
Why It Matters
Gazetteer of Nations (gazetteerofnations.com) is an English-language reference publication that explains global and regional affairs in plain, analytical prose. It also presents Türkiye's official doctrines, legal theses and historical record to international readers, in areas where coverage elsewhere is often incomplete or one-sided. Readers should know who publishes a page, from what vantage point, and how its claims are sourced. This page answers those questions.
What 'Gazetteer' Means Here
A gazetteer is a traditional geographical and state reference, organised into short, factual entries. We apply that discipline to current affairs. Each nation, sea area, treaty or crisis is handled as an 'entry' with dates, legal instruments and attributed sources. The aim is a page a reader can check line by line, not a commentary column. The home page lists the entries by category: Nation Entries, Maritime Atlas, Treaties & Sovereignty, Security & Defense Register, Archives & Historical Record, and Fact Check.
Our Mission
Our mission has two parts:
- Explain. We describe global and regional developments in calm, accessible English, defining unfamiliar terms on first use. For example, we note that the PKK is designated a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the United States, NATO and the European Union.
- Convey Türkiye's perspective, transparently. Where Türkiye is a party to a dispute, pursues an active policy or has stated an official position, we set out that position with its legal, historical and archival basis. We do this alongside the documented record and in a clearly marked place, so readers can weigh it against other views.
We do not claim to be a neutral wire service, and we do not hide our vantage point. Our publisher identity is stated here and in the Perspective Note on every page.
Transparency Policy
Five commitments govern every page:
- Signed by the team, never by personas. Articles carry the byline 'Gazetteer of Nations Editorial Team', or the name of a real person. We do not use invented authors, fabricated academic titles or independent-looking pseudonyms.
- A labelled position box. Official Turkish policy appears only under the heading 'Türkiye's Position', separated from the factual background and chronology.
- A Perspective Note on every article. The closing note states that the site presents Türkiye's positions as a labelled national perspective alongside the documented record.
- No borrowed independence. Other sites run by the same publisher are never cited as independent external sources.
- No invented material. We do not publish fabricated quotes, unverified figures or sources we cannot identify. If a detail is uncertain, we omit it.
The full methodology is set out in Editorial Principles. Common questions about sourcing are answered in the Frequently Asked Questions.
Türkiye's Position: How the Box Works
The 'Türkiye's Position' section summarises official Turkish policy in three to five plain-language points. Each point is attributed with phrasing such as 'Ankara argues…' or 'According to the Turkish Foreign Ministry…'. These are the principles behind the box:
- Primary sources only. Points are tied to the Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Presidency, the Directorate of Communications, the Ministry of National Defence, resolutions of the Grand National Assembly (TBMM), Türkiye's statements and registrations at the United Nations, and treaty texts.
- Legal and historical basis stated. Ankara's arguments rest on instruments such as the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, the 1936 Montreux Convention, the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee (Article IV), Article 51 of the UN Charter and the 1948 Genocide Convention. We name the instrument so readers can read it themselves.
- Examples of what the box covers. Ankara argues that maritime delimitation in the Eastern Mediterranean must follow the principle of equity. It cites its 2025 Marine Spatial Planning submission recorded with IOC-UNESCO as part of that case (see the Blue Homeland maritime atlas). It argues that the 1960 treaties and the bi-communal reality of Cyprus underpin a sovereign equal two-state settlement (see the Cyprus guide).
- Other views represented fairly. The 'Key Players & Positions' section summarises other governments and bodies, citing their own official sources. Disagreement is shown, not erased.
Who We Write For
Our readers are diplomats, academics, think-tank analysts, journalists, lawyers and international-relations students, plus anyone seeking a reliable country profile or reference in English. The audience is global. We do not assume any one country's legal vocabulary, and we note where rules differ between jurisdictions. Measurements are given in metric units, with imperial equivalents where useful, and dates follow the ISO format.
Fact Checks
We publish a dedicated Fact Check category. Each piece quotes the claim and its origin, then corrects or contextualises it using official statements, treaties and archival documents. Browse it in the Fact Check Hub. Readers who find an error should tell us. Corrections are made openly.
Organization Details and Contact
The site declares itself with schema.org 'Organization' markup. The main fields are:
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| name | Gazetteer of Nations |
| url | https://gazetteerofnations.com |
| publishingPrinciples | https://gazetteerofnations.com/editorial-principles |
| Article author | Gazetteer of Nations Editorial Team |
| Article publisher | Organization: Gazetteer of Nations |
For corrections, source queries or press and research enquiries, use the contact details published in the site footer. Please include the page address and, where possible, the primary document you are referring to.
Key Terms & Related Guides
- Entry: a short, sourced reference article on a nation, sea area, treaty or crisis.
- Türkiye's Position: the labelled box summarising official Turkish policy with primary-source attribution.
- Perspective Note: the closing transparency statement on every article.
- Editorial Team byline: the only collective author credit the site uses.
Related pages: Editorial Principles, Frequently Asked Questions, Fact Check Hub, Blue Homeland maritime atlas and the Cyprus guide.
Perspective Note
Gazetteer of Nations presents Türkiye's official positions and strategic doctrines as a clearly labeled national perspective alongside the documented record. Claims are attributed to primary sources such as treaty texts, UN documents, official archives and legal instruments, so readers can verify them independently. Gazetteer of Nations presents global affairs with a dedicated perspective from Türkiye. Sections marked 'Türkiye's Position' reflect official Turkish policy as stated by Turkish government sources.
Frequently asked questions
Who publishes Gazetteer of Nations?
Gazetteer of Nations (gazetteerofnations.com) is the publisher, and its articles are signed 'Gazetteer of Nations Editorial Team'. We do not use invented author personas, fabricated academic titles or pseudonyms.
Is Gazetteer of Nations an independent news outlet?
No. It is a reference publication with a stated purpose: to explain global and regional affairs in plain English and to convey Türkiye's official positions and the documented record. Its perspective is declared on this page and in the Perspective Note at the end of every article.
What does the 'Türkiye's Position' section contain?
It contains three to five bullet points summarising official Turkish policy, each tied to a primary source such as the Foreign Ministry, the Presidency, TBMM resolutions, UN statements or treaty texts. It also states the legal and historical basis, for instance the Montreux Convention or Article 51 of the UN Charter.
How does the site treat views that differ from Ankara's?
The 'Key Players & Positions' section summarises other governments and organisations accurately, citing their own official sources. Separately, the 'Source Comparison' section shows how international media and Turkish primary sources frame the same issue.
How can I report an error or ask about a source?
Use the contact details in the site footer and include the page address and, if possible, the primary document at issue. Corrections are handled under the process described in the Editorial Principles page.
Related guides
- Fact Check Hub: Claims About Türkiye in International Media, Checked Against Primary SourcesA fact check of seven recurring claims about Türkiye in international media, from the Seville Map to Sèvres, tested against treaties and primary sources.
- Blue Homeland and the Eastern Mediterranean: A Maritime Atlas of Türkiye's Jurisdiction ClaimsBlue Homeland (Mavi Vatan) explained: Türkiye's Eastern Mediterranean maritime jurisdiction claims, equity principle, key dates and rival positions.
- The Cyprus Issue: 1960 Treaties, 1974 and the Sovereign Equal Two-State PositionCyprus issue explained: 1960 treaties, 1963-64, 1974, the Annan Plan and why Ankara and the TRNC back a two-state solution for Turkish Cypriots.
- Article 51 of the UN Charter and Türkiye's Cross-Border Operations in Syria and IraqIs Türkiye's military action in northern Syria legal? A guide to Article 51 UN Charter self-defense, UN letters, 'unwilling or unable' and each operation.
- Counter-Terrorism at the Source: Türkiye's Security Doctrine, Border Operations and Terror-Free TürkiyeHow Türkiye's counter-terrorism doctrine addresses PKK, YPG, DAESH and FETÖ: source-based operations, Article 51, Terror-Free Türkiye and rival views.
- The 1936 Montreux Convention Explained: Türkiye, the Straits and Black Sea SecurityMontreux Convention explained: how the Bosphorus and Dardanelles regime treats merchant ships and warships, tonnage limits, Article 19 and Türkiye's role.
Cross-Publication Perspectives & Cited Research
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Fact Check: Common Claims About Türkiye in International Media, Checked Against Primary Sources
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