President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said the European Union must make a “historic decision” on Türkiye, arguing that the bloc needs Ankara at a time of shifting global balances.
“Türkiye is a great opportunity for the European Union, and the Union has to make a historic decision on whether to make use of this,” Erdoğan told reporters on his return flight from Kazakhstan.
“Europe has come to a crossroads and must assess the situation much more carefully,” he said.
Erdoğan said Türkiye remained committed to its full membership vision despite what he described as discriminatory and inconsistent approaches from parts of the EU.
“We want to strengthen both our country and the Union as part of the European Union,” he said.
“Türkiye is not a country that becomes a burden to the structures it joins, but one that carries burdens.”
The president also commented on the NATO summit Türkiye will host in Ankara on July 7-8, saying the meeting would come at a critical moment for the alliance and global security.
“We expect important decisions to be taken in Ankara regarding the future of the alliance and the shape of the global security architecture,” Erdoğan said.
He said NATO was operating in a very different world from the one in which it was founded, with more complex threats, diversified risks and a weakened global system.
“Fair burden-sharing, sincere cooperation and a common understanding of security within NATO are very important for the alliance’s future,” he said.
“As Türkiye, we are ready to do our part for a more determined NATO that is better prepared against threats.”
On regional tensions, Erdoğan blamed Israel’s “endless provocations” for helping fuel the current crisis involving Iran and the United States.
“Israel wants this war to spread across the region and for the fog in our region to deepen,” he said, adding that Türkiye would continue efforts to prevent the crisis from becoming more complicated.
Erdoğan also said Türkiye’s contacts with the United States over a possible return to the F-35 fighter jet program were continuing.
“Our demands on the F-35 are clear. Our colleagues are maintaining contacts with their American counterparts. We hope to achieve a positive result,” he said.
He added that Türkiye’s national combat aircraft program, KAAN, was progressing and had drawn international attention.
“KAAN is a first step for us. We can and will build better and stronger ones,” Erdoğan said.
The president said Türkiye’s defense industry had demonstrated its growing capacity at SAHA 2026 in Istanbul, where more than 200 new products were introduced and $8 billion in business volume was reached.
Erdoğan also said Türkiye would continue to deepen ties with the Turkic world, describing the Organization of Turkic States as Ankara’s “family council.”
He said Türkiye would work during its term presidency to strengthen the organization internally and externally, especially in diplomacy, energy, trade, transport, security and defense.
