Abstract:

Among the problems encountered by the Ottoman Empire in the 19th century, the problem of foreign mail constituted an important place. These posts opened as a result of various agreements between European states and the Ottoman Empire, and foreign postal agencies offices in many places. Foreign posts, which were initially established only to carry embassy posts, were also used in the communication of the people and merchants in the 19th century, when the need for production and distribution network became increasingly important with the development of trade and communication. These mails, which have become an institutional structure over time, are used for prohibited publications, smuggled weapons, human smuggling, etc. The instrumentalization of harmful and illegal substances in the transport created an important security problem for the Ottoman Empire. In order to eliminate this problem, the state primarily tried to modernize the Ottoman posts. The removal of foreign mail, which is seen as a state issue, was among the priority agenda items of the state. He tried to eliminate this through diplomatic channels, but could not get any results due to the negative attitudes of foreign states. In the study, the diplomatic activities of the Ottoman Empire to solve the problem of foreign posts are discussed.

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