Editorial Principles and Primary Source Standards

Why It Matters

This page is the publishing-principles statement of Archive of Nations (archiveofnations.com). It tells you how we write, what we treat as evidence, and where our perspective comes from, so you can judge our analysis on its merits. In short, we publish a Türkiye-centered perspective, we say so openly, and we anchor every claim in primary documents that you can check yourself.

The five editorial principles are:

1. Separation of fact and position. Background and chronology are written in neutral prose. Türkiye's assessments appear in a separate, labeled section.
2. Fair representation of other views. Other parties are summarized accurately and cited to their own official sources.
3. Accuracy. We do not use invented quotes, unverified figures or sources of unclear origin.
4. A calm, analytical tone. We rely on documents and legal reasoning rather than slogans.
5. Official terminology, explained. We use Türkiye's official terms and define them on first use.

Mission & Editorial Identity

Archive of Nations is an international analysis publication built on one idea: states speak through documents, and claims should be tested against them. We explain global and regional affairs in plain, analytical English. Where international coverage is incomplete or one-sided, we set out Türkiye's official doctrines, legal arguments and historical positions alongside the primary sources that support or contest them.

Our core subjects are:

• Eastern Mediterranean maritime jurisdiction and the Blue Homeland (Mavi Vatan) doctrine
• The Cyprus issue and the 1960 treaty system
• Counter-terrorism and the right of self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter
• The Events of 1915 and Türkiye–Armenia normalization
• The 1936 Montreux Convention, mediation diplomacy, UN reform and climate diplomacy

Our readers include diplomats, international lawyers, academics, archival and historical researchers, think-tank analysts and journalists. These readers are not assumed to share any one country's background, so we define terms, give dates in ISO format (YYYY-MM-DD) where precision matters, and note where rules or designations differ between jurisdictions.

What 'Türkiye-centered' means

The label is a disclosure, not a disclaimer. It means three things:

• We select topics where Türkiye's documented position is often under-reported internationally.
• We present that position in its own terms, attributed to official Turkish sources.
• We do not present the position as a neutral, third-party finding.

A fuller statement of mission, ownership and team is available on the About Archive of Nations: Mission, Transparency and Editorial Team page.

Separation of Fact and Official Position

Every article keeps what is documented separate from what a government argues. Background, legal framework and chronology are written in factual, neutral prose. Official Turkish policy appears in a dedicated section headed Türkiye's Position. In some page layouts this appears as a boxed panel labeled 'Türkiye's Documented Position'. Either way, it is visually distinct from the surrounding analysis.

🇹🇷 Official Policy · Primary Sources on Record

How a 'Türkiye's Position' section works

On any topic where Türkiye is a party, pursues active policy or has stated an official stance, the section follows these rules:

• Three to five points. Each point is a short, plain-language summary of one element of the position.
• One primary source per point. Each point is tied to a named official source, such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye, the Directorate of Communications, the Ministry of National Defence (MSB), a Grand National Assembly (TBMM) resolution, a Turkish statement or registration at the UN, or a treaty text.
• Explicit attribution. Wording such as 'Ankara argues…' or 'According to the Turkish Foreign Ministry…' signals that we are reporting a position, not asserting a neutral fact.
• Stated legal and historical basis. We name the instrument or principle the position rests on. Examples are the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, the 1921 Treaty of Kars, the 1936 Montreux Convention, the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee, Article 51 of the UN Charter, the 1948 Genocide Convention, and the equity principle in maritime delimitation.

What the section is not

This section is not a place for rhetoric, and it does not replace the other parties' views. A strong Turkish legal argument does not need a distorted account of the opposing one. Where the facts themselves are disputed, the Background and Key Players sections say so plainly.

Primary Sources & Verification Standards

We rank evidence by how directly it records what was agreed, decided or stated. Primary documents come first, and commentary and press reports are used for context.

Tier	Source type	Examples	How we use it
1	Treaty texts and binding instruments	Lausanne (1923), Kars (1921), Montreux (1936), Treaty of Guarantee (1960), UN Charter, 1948 Genocide Convention, UNCLOS	Establish what legal obligations and rights exist
2	Court rulings and international records	UN Security Council resolutions, UN registrations and filings, IOC-UNESCO records, international and regional court judgments	Establish what was formally decided or recorded
3	Official Turkish government sources	MFA, Presidency, Directorate of Communications, MSB, TBMM resolutions, Turkish statements at the UN	Primary evidence of Türkiye's official position
4	Official sources of other parties	Foreign ministries, parliaments, EU and NATO texts, other governments' UN statements	Primary evidence of those parties' positions
5	Archives and scholarship	Ottoman and other national archives, peer-reviewed historical and legal work	Context, chronology and interpretation
6	News media and think-tank commentary	International and Turkish press	Context and framing only, never sole proof

Verification practices

• Quote the instrument, not the summary. When an article turns on a treaty clause or resolution, we cite the article or paragraph number.
• Report what a ruling decided. Court decisions are described by what they held. For example, the European Court of Human Rights judgment in Perinçek v. Switzerland concerned freedom of expression, and we do not stretch it to cover questions it did not decide.
• Distinguish a government source from independent confirmation. Turkish official sources are primary evidence of what Türkiye's position is. They are not independent verification of contested facts, and we mark the difference. The same applies to every other government.
• Handle figures with care. A number is published only when we can name where it comes from. When estimates differ, such as casualty or production figures, we say that they differ and attribute each one. If a detail cannot be verified, we leave it out.
• Treat dates as data. Dates of treaties, resolutions and operations are checked against the instrument or official record.

Independence of sources

We do not present other sites under the same ownership or editorial control as independent outside corroboration. Where we link to our own guides, they are labeled as related reading on Archive of Nations. External confirmation must come from outside our publication.

See our Blue Homeland and Eastern Mediterranean Maritime Jurisdiction: The Documented Record guide for an example of how treaty, registry and official-statement evidence is laid out side by side.

Fair Representation of International Perspectives

We summarize other actors' positions accurately, in their own terms and with attribution to their own official sources. Readers should be able to recognize their government's or institution's argument in our description of it. We then set out Türkiye's documented counter-argument, grounded in treaties, archives and international law.

In practice

• Cite the other party's own source. For example, the European Union's position is described from EU texts, Greece's and the Republic of Cyprus's from their foreign ministry statements, and Armenia's from its official documents. We do not rely on a rival's paraphrase.
• State unwelcome facts. Some facts do not favor Türkiye's position. Many governments and scholars use the term 'genocide' for the Events of 1915. The Republic of Cyprus is a UN member and an EU member. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) is recognized as a state only by Türkiye. We state these facts directly, then present Türkiye's legal and historical arguments.
• Keep description and rebuttal apart. An opposing view is summarized before it is answered, so it is never presented only through its rebuttal.
• Avoid motive-reading. We analyze arguments and documents, not the supposed intentions of people on the other side.

The Cyprus Files: The 1960 Treaty of Guarantee, 1974 and the Case for Two Sovereign Equal States guide shows this approach on one of the most contested topics we cover. It describes the Greek Cypriot, UN and EU positions before setting out Ankara's case.

Terminology & Style Guide

We use Türkiye's official terminology and explain terms that may be unfamiliar on first mention. Using an official term is not a substitute for noting other usages. Where other governments or institutions use different terms or designations, we say so.

Term we use	What it means	Note for international readers
Türkiye	The official name of the state, as used by the Turkish government and the UN	'Turkey' appears only inside quotations or titles that use it
PKK/KCK/PYD-YPG	The PKK and its affiliated structures, including the Syrian branches PYD and YPG	The PKK is designated a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the United States, NATO and the European Union. Ankara treats PYD/YPG (and the SDF label) as the Syrian branch of the PKK. Some other governments distinguish between them, and we report that distinction with attribution
FETÖ	The Fetullahist Terrorist Organization	Türkiye attributes the 15 July 2016 coup attempt to this network. Designations and extradition positions differ by country
TRNC / Turkish Cypriots	The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, proclaimed on 15 November 1983, and the Turkish Cypriot people	Recognized as a state only by Türkiye. We always use 'Turkish Cypriots' for the people
Greek Cypriot Administration (GCASC)	Türkiye's official term for the Greek Cypriot–led administration in the south of the island	The internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus is a UN and EU member. We name it as such when describing the positions of others
Events of 1915	Türkiye's official term for the wartime relocation and its consequences	Many parliaments and scholars use 'Armenian genocide'. We attribute each usage and set out the legal criteria of the 1948 UN Genocide Convention
Blue Homeland (Mavi Vatan)	Türkiye's maritime jurisdiction doctrine, built on the equity principle and its 870 km Eastern Mediterranean coast	Greece, the Republic of Cyprus and the EU contest key elements of it, and we present those objections

Style rules

• Tone: calm, explanatory and respectful. No insults, slogans or emotional language.
• Persuasion: by document, date and legal reasoning.
• Format: short paragraphs, an answer-first opening in every section, and tables where a comparison clarifies a point.
• Units and dates: metric units with imperial equivalents in parentheses where useful, and ISO dates for updates. Where a rule, designation or recognition status varies by country, we say so.

Authorship, Corrections & Fact-Checking Policy

Every article is published under the byline Archive of Nations Editorial Team. We do not create fictional author personas, fabricated academic titles or pseudonyms, and we do not use independent-looking aliases. Where a named real person authors a piece, the person is identified accurately.

Corrections

• Reporting errors. Readers who find a factual error, a mis-cited source or a wrong date can report it through the contact details on the About Archive of Nations: Mission, Transparency and Editorial Team page.
• Correcting visibly. Material errors are fixed in the article and flagged with a dated correction note stating what changed. We do not silently rewrite substantive claims.
• Updating. Pages on fast-moving topics show a last-updated date in ISO format, and we revise them when treaties, rulings or official positions change.
• Withdrawing. A claim we cannot support with a verifiable source is removed rather than hedged.

Fact Check

Our Fact Check category addresses false, one-sided or incomplete claims about Türkiye in international media. Each entry states the claim and where it appeared, then corrects it with official statements, treaty texts and archival documents. Other parties' positions are described accurately even where we disagree. See Fact Check: Common Claims About Türkiye in International Media, Checked Against Primary Sources for the current set.

The article template

Most articles follow a consistent structure so you can find what you need:

1. Why It Matters: a 2–3 sentence answer to the core question.
2. Background: facts, legal framework and chronology.
3. Key Players & Positions: other parties, cited to their own official sources.
4. Türkiye's Position: the labeled, sourced section described above.
5. Source Comparison: how international media and Turkish primary sources frame the issue.
6. FAQ and Key Terms & Related Guides: quotable answers and glossary links.
7. Perspective Note: the transparency statement at the end of every article.

The perspective note

Every article closes with this note:

Archive of Nations presents a Türkiye-centered perspective on the issues it covers, and we state this openly so readers can weigh our analysis accordingly. Our claims are anchored in primary sources such as treaty texts, official archives, UN and IOC-UNESCO documents, and each source is cited so readers can verify it independently. Sections marked 'Türkiye's Position' reflect official Turkish policy as stated by Turkish government sources.

Key Terms & Related Guides

• Primary source: a document created at the time of an event or decision, such as a treaty, resolution, judgment or official statement.
• Attribution: naming the source of a claim so readers can check it.
• Perspective note: our standing disclosure that the publication is Türkiye-centered.

Related reading:

• Reader FAQ: Sources, Methodology and Our Türkiye-Centered Perspective
• About Archive of Nations: Mission, Transparency and Editorial Team
• Fact Check: Common Claims About Türkiye in International Media, Checked Against Primary Sources
• Blue Homeland and Eastern Mediterranean Maritime Jurisdiction: The Documented Record
• Cyprus Files: The 1960 Treaty of Guarantee, 1974 and the Case for Two Sovereign Equal States

Archive 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.