Former Turkish prime minister and foreign minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has announced his withdrawal from politics, saying the opposition Future Party will cease political activities. In a report published on August 2, 2026, he described the move not as surrender but as a decision to distance himself from the country’s “polluted political environment.” Once a close ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Davutoğlu later became a critic of the political system he helped build.

Davutoğlu, an academic, sought to introduce a new outlook to Turkish foreign policy through his “Strategic Depth” theory. He became foreign minister in 2009 and prime minister in 2014. During his tenure, Turkey expanded its diplomatic presence in Africa and the Middle East under a policy of “zero problems with neighbors.” However, his foreign policy faced challenges amid the Syrian war and changing regional conditions.

He left the premiership in 2016 after disagreements with Erdoğan over power and policy, then formed the Future Party in 2019. Analysts said the party failed to gain significant support because of limits on opposition politics and its inability to establish an independent organizational base. Running under the main opposition CHP’s symbol in 2023 further weakened its separate political identity.