Erdoğan: We will write ‘new story’ through anti-terror bid

ISTANBUL

The successful accomplishment of the “terror-free Türkiye project” will pave the way for the country to write a “new story,” President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said, underlining the importance of continued unity and solidarity of 86 million citizens.

Erdoğan attended the graduation ceremony at the National Defense University in Istanbul on July 10 along with Defense Minister Yaşar Güler and other senior military officials.

“With the successful completion of our process for a terror-free Türkiye, we will begin to write a new story, both domestically and internationally,” Erdoğan said, describing this bid as one of the most important pillars of the ongoing “Century of Türkiye” process.

Türkiye must strengthen its internal front by boosting the brotherhood and unity of the 86 million people, the president said, drawing attention to the fact that the security paradigm is shifting radically.

“You know we hosted the NATO leaders summit in Ankara. We discussed the future of the alliance in Türkiye in the context of changing security conditions. We shared our assessments on the current agenda with our allies,” Erdoğan stated, recalling that Türkiye is the country that oversees the security of the alliance’s southern flank.

“We hope that the decisions taken at the Ankara Summit will contribute to the establishment of peace and stability in the region and beyond,” he added.

However, Erdoğan also added that Türkiye can never entrust its security to anyone regardless of the alliances it is a part of and vowed that the country will not compromise its security.

“We have increased the proportion of our independence in the field of defense industry to 82 percent,” Erdoğan said, informing that Türkiye exported around more than $11 billion worth of products in the past year.

The increase in exports in the first half of this year compared to last year is more than 30 percent, the president stated, congratulating all the stakeholders of the industry as well as the Turkish military personnel who successfully use them in the field.

Erdoğan stated that Türkiye is emerging as a pivotal global player, citing its active diplomatic efforts to foster regional and international peace, including in the Balkans, the Caucasus, the Middle East, and Africa.