Turkish scholars say Long March offers insights into China’s development

Dragon Media News Desk

The Long March demonstrated the importance of perseverance, organisation and strategic thinking in the face of adversity, Turkish scholars, students and political figures have said. They also called for stronger cultural and people-to-people ties between China and Türkiye.

From 1934 to 1936, the Chinese Red Army travelled about 12,500 kilometres to break through encirclement by Kuomintang forces. This year marks the 90th anniversary of the Long March’s victory and the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Türkiye.

Murat Tamer, a Turkish scholar of cultural exchanges between the two countries, said the Long March showed the Communist Party of China’s determination, organisational capacity and strategic thinking. Studying the episode, he said, could help Turkish people understand how China overcame difficulties and followed its own path of development.

Berfin Adiyaman, a Turkish master’s student at Northwestern Polytechnical University in China, said learning about the Long March had deepened her understanding of perseverance. She said her participation in exchanges between Chinese and Turkish businesses and her work at a logistics company in Xi’an had helped her gain a closer understanding of Chinese society. She hopes to contribute to economic cooperation and youth exchanges between the two countries.

Yuksel Mansur Kilinc, a member of the Türkiye–China Interparliamentary Friendship Group, said China’s development path had attracted interest in Türkiye. He highlighted its focus on common prosperity, harmony between people and nature, and coordinated material and spiritual development.

Kilinc called for closer cooperation in the media and cultural sectors alongside economic and technological ties, saying such exchanges could promote mutual understanding and support the long-term development of China–Türkiye relations.