MHP leader presses for an apology

ANKARA - Hürriyet Daily News

Turkey should remain on the side of common sense, Bahçeli says. AA photo

Turkey should bring Syria to account for shooting down a Turkish jet in the Mediterranean and the government should be persistent for an apology and compensation for the “hostile assault,” Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli has said.

“The government should be persistent for an explicit apology and compensation. Turkey should use all kinds of diplomatic channels and take the issue to international platforms. The United Nations, for its part, should involve itself in this tension between Syria and Turkey,” Bahçeli said, adding that his party was ready to lend its support to the government for the necessary steps.

Speaking at his party’s parliamentary group meeting, Bahçeli stressed that the MHP would not use the issue for their political gain, alluding to Turkey’s national interests. “This issue primarily concerns our national interests. We will not use such an important problem for our political gain, this is out of the question,” he said.

Expressing his gratitude for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s invitation to inform the opposition leaders over Syria’s downing of Turkish jet, Bahçeli stressed that his party would stand behind the government over the decisions taken. “However, the government should be attentive to agitations of global powers, war should be considered as the last option,” he said.

Turkey has the capacity and determinacy to respond to all deliberate aggressions, but should be watchful against the “provocations of imperialist mentalities,” Bahçeli said. “Turkey should remain on the side of common sense and be watchful against the provocations of war lobbies and imperialist mentalities. The crisis should be urgently resolved within diplomacy.”