Erdoğan says Türkiye is shaping history through peaceful policies

MUŞ

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Aug. 26 said Türkiye was shaping the course of history in its region through “conscientious, principled and peaceful policies,” while renewing his call for national unity.

“Friend and foe alike should know and understand this: History is being rewritten in our region,” Erdoğan said at a ceremony marking the 955th anniversary of the Battle of Manzikert in the eastern province of Muş.

“Türkiye is shaping history through its conscientious, principled and peaceful policies. No one can stand in its way any longer,” he said.

Erdoğan said unity had enabled the country to overcome major challenges in the past, citing Manzikert, the Gallipoli campaign, the War of Independence and the failed coup attempt of July 15, 2016.

“Whenever we have stood united and closed ranks, we have advanced from success to success and from victory to victory,” he said.

“But whenever we have fallen into division and drifted apart, we have faced very serious dangers.”

Türkiye needed to remain strong not only for its own citizens but also for those beyond its borders who looked to the country for support, Erdoğan said.

He reaffirmed his commitment to the government’s “terror-free Türkiye” initiative and its goal of a “terror-free region,” linking both to his administration’s broader “Century of Türkiye” vision.

“We will not be led down different paths by others’ provocations,” he said.

“We will continue to move forward with determination, patience and resolve.”

The ceremony at Malazgirt Battlefield Historical National Park also marked the 104th anniversary of the Great Offensive, launched on Aug. 26, 1922, during Türkiye’s War of Independence.

The 1071 battle between Seljuk and Byzantine forces is widely regarded in Türkiye as a turning point that opened Anatolia to Turkish settlement.

Erdoğan attended related commemorations in Ahlat in neighboring Bitlis province a day earlier and chaired a cabinet meeting there.