Turkey leads global relations, does not change axis: President Erdogan

“Some circles were trying to portray our foreign policy initiatives as ‘axis shift’. However, Turkey does not experience axis shift; it is strengthening its own axis by simultaneously maintaining different diplomatic relations around the world on of our national interests,” Erdogan told parliament in the capital, Ankara.

Located at the crossroads of three continents, Turkey is heavily affected by global developments, he said.

“Turkey does not have the luxury of locking itself in, isolating itself from the outside world and watching events in its region while sitting on the fence,” he added.

Erdogan called Ankara’s policy “constructive and active”, taking the lead in resolving global and regional issues.

He stressed that Turkey does not “seek escalation” with other countries, nor will it “bow to pressure from anywhere”.

“We firmly defend Turkey’s rights in all fields with an honorable, patient, determined and cautious attitude,” he said, vowing not to undermine the nation’s dignity.

On the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, Erdogan said Türkiye opted for peace, dialogue and being a “fair arbiter”.

“Given our close relations with both countries, we preferred to strive to end the war instead of fanning the fire and inciting sedition,” he said.

Turkey, the UN, Russia and Ukraine signed an agreement in Istanbul on July 22 to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which paused after the start of the Russian-Russian war. Ukrainian in February.

“The United Nations, whose prestige has been shaken due to its inadequacy in the face of global crises, has seen one of its greatest achievements in recent years through this agreement resulting from the intensive efforts of our country,” said Erdoğan.

In addition, he said, a recent prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine at the initiative of Ankara has taken Turkish diplomacy to a “much higher” level.

“During our contacts on the occasion of the 77th UN General Assembly, we were delighted to see the level reached by Turkish foreign policy.

“We have personally seen that the measures taken by our country in the Russian-Ukrainian crisis, the migration issue, humanitarian aid, the fight against terrorism and the maintenance of peace have won the appreciation of the whole world,” he said. he added.

Turkey calls on Greece to refrain from provocation

Moving on to the island of Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean, the Turkish president pointed out that it is home to two distinct states and peoples.

Erdogan stressed that isolation and embargoes must end on the island and that all promises of international recognition of Turkish Cypriots must be honoured.

He also reiterated Türkiye’s refusal to accept a recent US decision to lift an arms embargo against the Greek Cypriot administration of Southern Cyprus.

“The encouragement shown to Greece, which is arming islands with non-military status in the Aegean Sea, goes against all reason, belief,” Erdogan said, adding that it also contradicts “the idea of alliance”.

The president said that continuing a policy of provocation and tension in the region would not be in anyone’s interest.

“At every opportunity we repeat that we know who is leaving Greece again after 100 years and that we are aware of the game that is being played,” he added.

Erdogan called on the Greek leadership to refrain from any provocation that would lead them and his people to disaster.

Türkiye, a NATO member for more than 70 years, has complained about Greece’s repeated provocative actions and rhetoric in the region in recent months, including the arming of islands near Turkey’s coast that are demilitarized under treaty obligations, claiming that such actions frustrate its good faith efforts toward peace.

Turkey’s fight against terrorism

Regarding Türkiye’s fight against terrorism, Erdogan said that the country’s security forces, including its military and intelligence services, “would leave no stone unturned to fight terrorists”.

“We have provided our security forces with the means and capabilities that will enable them to carry out their mission of fighting terrorism and protecting our country against regional and global threats,” he said.

Erdogan stressed that Türkiye’s strategy to preserve peace and security was to eliminate threats at their source beyond the country’s borders.

“We are implementing this strategy saying ‘we can arrive unannounced at night’,” he added.

The president said Turkey would continue its efforts to destroy a “corridor” that terrorists are trying to build along its border. He added that since the start of Türkiye’s cross-border operations in Syria in 2016, around 526,000 uprooted Syrians in Türkiye had voluntarily returned to the resulting safe areas in their country.

“As a country that has been fighting terrorism for almost 40 years and has lost tens of thousands of lives to terrorism, we are not in a position to make concessions to anyone on this issue,” he said. said Erdogan.

“With our operations in Syria and northern Iraq, we have disabled separatist traitors,” he added, referring to members of the PKK terror group.

In its more than 35-year terrorist campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of more than 40,000 people, including women, children and infants.

Turkey ‘diligently’ monitors Sweden and Finland’s efforts under NATO deal

Referring to Sweden’s and Finland’s bids to join NATO, Erdogan said Turkey had clearly shown its commitment to fighting terrorism during the latest NATO enlargement.

“We have ensured that NATO identifies terrorism as one of the main threats to the alliance in its new strategy document adopted in Madrid. With the tripartite memorandum that we signed before the Madrid summit, we have created a record of our expectations in the fight against terrorism,” he added.

The president said Turkey was “diligently” monitoring Sweden’s and Finland’s efforts to fulfill their commitments.

“The final decision will be made by our assembly (parliament) on behalf of our nation. As long as the promises made to our country are not fulfilled, we will continue with our principled and determined structure,” Erdogan stressed.

Sweden and Finland formally applied to join NATO in June, a move prompted by Russia’s war on Ukraine.

However, Türkiye has expressed objections to the membership offers, criticizing the countries for tolerating and even supporting terrorist groups.

A trilateral NATO summit memorandum signed between the countries in June states that Finland and Sweden will not provide support to the YPG/PYD, the Syrian branch of the PKK, or the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) – the group behind the 2016 coup defeats in Turkey.

Foreign Police

Erdogan also said that a climate of diplomatic normalization had started to progress around Türkiye in the Middle East.

“Our relations with the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Israel are developing on the basis of mutual interests, and a similar process is underway with Egypt,” Erdogan said.

He reaffirmed the importance of the Palestinian cause for Turkey and that Ankara would always stand with the Palestinians.

Erdogan also expressed his support for Azerbaijan, stressing that Turkey was doing its part to ensure lasting peace in the region of this country.

“Through the special representatives we have appointed, we have demonstrated our willingness to take our relations with Armenia to a new level. Armenia should make good use of the opportunity for peace offered to us,” he said. he pointed out.

Erdogan hinted at a possible meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in the Czech capital Prague, where the European Political Community summit is scheduled for October 6-7.

Regarding the economy, he said that, considering purchasing power parity, Turkey was the 11th largest economy in the world and the fourth in Europe in 2021.

“Turkey was one of the fastest growing G20 countries even when the COVID-19 pandemic deeply shook the global economy,” he added.

He pointed out that Turkey has become one of the first countries in the world to be able to design, produce and export its own defense industry products, including those for manned and unmanned air, land and sea vehicles, as well as hardware and software.

Noting that Türkiye had discovered a total of 540 billion cubic meters of natural gas reserves in the Black Sea, he said:

“We are gradually reducing our external dependence by investing in the production of domestic and renewable energy.”