Türkiye's relationship with the polar regions began in the 16th century when Piri Reis depicted the South American coasts closest to Antarctica on his world map. Within the framework of this historical background, scientific studies on the polar regions have been carried out for many years within the scope of international expeditions and collaborations.

Under the auspices of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye, with the support and financing of the Ministry of Industry and Technology and under the coordination of ITU PolReC, national scientific expeditions to the Antarctic continent were carried out in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

In order to carry out Türkiye's polar studies under an institutional structure, the Polar Research Institute (KARE) was established within TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center (MAM) in 2019. In line with the development of the institutional structure, as of 2025, KARE continues its activities as an independent institute under the umbrella of TÜBİTAK.

TÜBİTAK KARE operates to support research-development and scientific activities carried out in the polar regions, to plan and conduct National Polar Expeditions, to operate polar camps and bases belonging to our country, to coordinate logistics processes, to ensure coordination between relevant institutions and to develop international cooperation. The Institute aims to contribute to the development of a national polar strategy, raise awareness on polar research and represent our country on national and international platforms by strengthening science diplomacy in the polar regions.