The Cabinet Meeting chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has ended. President Erdoğan addresses the nation.
Highlights from President Erdoğan's statements:
My dear citizens, we have just completed our cabinet meeting. At our meeting, we discussed current developments in domestic politics, economy, security and foreign policy. At a time when instability is increasing in our region and new areas of tension are emerging, we, as the government, continue to keep our country in the direction of stability and development. The course of the world shows that preserving the environment of peace and stability in our country will become more important for Türkiye in the coming period.
I know that our citizens, regardless of their views, origins or sects, are as meticulous as we are in preserving this environment of peace and stability, and I thank our nation for its common sense.
As Türkiye, we are fighting sincerely with all our means against those who pour fuel on the fire in our geography with expansionist ambitions, to extinguish this fire, relieve the suffering, and stop the bloodshed. From the Balkans to the Turkish republics, wherever we have a brother, compatriot or friend, we defend their rights in the strongest possible way on every platform. We strive to establish friendly relations and good relations based on mutual respect with almost every country, starting with our neighbors. Not only that, we focus on establishing new partnerships with countries with which we have had limited relations for many years for various reasons. Since our last meeting, we have all witnessed developments that have expanded Türkiye's sphere of influence in the context of international relations.
CAMBODIA AND CANADA CONTACTS
On October 16, we discussed new cooperation opportunities with Cambodia in a wide range of areas, from bilateral commercial investments to energy, education and defense industry. The military framework agreement signed between the two countries became a reference that determined the direction of our relations with Cambodia in the new period. Another historic step we took was the official visit of Canadian Prime Minister Mr. Carney and his delegation to our country. We crowned this visit, which constitutes a turning point in our 83-year diplomatic relations with Canada, by elevating our relations to the level of strategic partnership. We also signed three new agreements that will strengthen our cooperation in the fields of defence, air transportation and energy.
We agreed to start Free Trade Agreement negotiations before the end of the year in order to increase our trade and investments. We aim to increase our trade volume, which is currently around 3 billion dollars, first to 5 billion dollars and then to 10 billion dollars. Again, over the weekend, we hosted the 9th Mediation Conference in Istanbul, followed by the Foreign Ministers' meetings. Hopefully, we will host the President of Kazakhstan, Mr. Tokayev, in Ankara on Wednesday. We will celebrate the 103rd anniversary of our Republic with great enthusiasm with our distinguished guests from the Turkish world. On the same day, we will open the Beştepe National Forest, the pearl of our Presidential Complex, to the use of our people.
"OUR FAMILY ASSEMBLY IS THE ORGANIZATION OF TURKISH STATES"
On Friday, October 30, we will host the 13th summit of the Organization of Turkish States, which we see as our family council, in Ankara again. I believe that, as the Turkish world, we will again stand in unity and solidarity against those who want to undermine our unshakable brotherhood.
Then, if possible, we will visit South Korea. On our return from Seoul, we will organize the COP31 Summit in Antalya with the participation of many heads of state and government. Hopefully, we will use these visits and summits in the most productive way to further strengthen Türkiye's regional and global role.
"WE STANDED STRONG SIDE THE LIBYA PEOPLE"
We look at the issues from the perspective of our Turkish state tradition. We are not looking to save face, but to build the future. The most concrete example of this is our Libya policy. We stood tall with the brotherly Libyan people in their most difficult times. We tried to fulfill the requirements of our brotherhood law. As you know, on November 27, 2019, we signed an agreement with the Libyan Government of National Accord on the delimitation of strategically important maritime jurisdiction areas. This agreement was a major step in guaranteeing the legitimate rights of Türkiye and Libya in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Another good development took place last week. The agreement was unanimously approved by the Libyan House of Representatives. In addition to the unanimity, this is also admirable: It is really valuable that the principle of one Libya, one state, which Türkiye has been advocating since the first day, is embodied in the context of consensus. Another important aspect of the decision is that our Libyan brothers act jointly on matters of national interest, despite their political differences. I find the development of this spirit extremely hopeful for Libya's prosperous and secure future.
"EU'S REACTIONS ARE NOT LEGITIMATE"
I want to express this here with all my heart. We believe that the path to peace, prosperity and security is through unity and solidarity. For this reason, we are making sincere efforts to reduce conflicts and expand alliances throughout our geography. As Türkiye, we do not want to see separation or discrimination in Libya or any other Islamic country. Hopefully, this desire of ours will come true in Libya as well. Türkiye will continue to be in dialogue with all actors for this purpose.
My dear nation, of course we have to underline this fact here. There is no legitimate justification for the reactions, especially from the European Union, following the approval of the agreement. Our policy regarding the Eastern Mediterranean is very clear. We, in the Eastern Mediterranean, are not looking to score goals, so to speak. We are only concerned with protecting our maritime jurisdiction, rights and interests. We advocate that disputes be handled peacefully and resolved through dialogue with all riparians. We expect all actors, especially the European Union, to display the same constructive will.
First of all, everyone should know this: Aggressive rhetoric disconnected from reality will not help anyone. Türkiye is not a country that gives importance to such discourses and determines policies accordingly. Our only compass in politics and foreign policy is Türkiye's interests. We will never hesitate to do what is right and beneficial for Türkiye and the Turkish nation, even if it means paying a price. I remind again those who try to exclude Türkiye from the Eastern Mediterranean that we expect the common will of our country and Libya to be respected. I send my heartfelt greetings to our brothers in the Libyan House of Representatives and the brotherly Libyan people. I say, may God perpetuate our solidarity.
"Türkiye WAS NOT FOUND ON THE STREET"
I find it valuable that politicians who say "What are we doing in Libya" are giving up our rights today. I especially express that I find it valuable for the future of politics. See, I said it before. Turning politics from competition on democratic grounds, within consensus, into a fight of enemies is an approach that is as dangerous as it is wrong.
I see the war jargon that the opposition has been using lately, which is unclear to whom and what it serves, but clearly does not serve Türkiye, as one of the most obvious examples of this irresponsibility. Türkiye, thank God, is a country where peace and tranquility prevail in every inch. Türkiye is a country where 86 million people live in unity and peace and is the island of peace in its region. However, if there are those who dream of a similar initiative, encouraged by the events taking place in some European countries, they should know that Türkiye is not on the streets. It is not a country that can be handed over to the streets.
Those who attack our government under the pretext of freedom of the press should come forward and explain their dirty dealings, if they can, before trying to suppress crimes with demonstrations. No one should be sorry. Those who openly threatened media organizations, journalists and television channels in the squares until yesterday cannot teach us a lesson in freedom of the press.
We have no problem neither with freedom of the press nor with critical voices. Türkiye is one of the most advanced countries in the world in terms of media diversity. Our country ranks first in Europe in terms of the number of television channels. Hundreds of television channels and thousands of radio channels of all views broadcast freely in our country. As long as it does not contain insults, lies or disinformation, anyone can say, write or speak whatever they want. We see this as a symbol of Türkiye's sociological diversity and welcome different voices. But like all democratic countries in the world, Türkiye does not and cannot allow operations to be carried out against it through complicated relations.
I would like to remind you of this basic truth again. Whether we are in power or in opposition, we are all people obliged to serve the country and the nation. Our positions, titles, and all the honors we have today are merely tools that our nation has given us to serve itself. Turkey should be our priority. Our country must have peace and stability. As a nation, we should not give opportunity to those wringing their hands to destroy the atmosphere of stability and trust that we have achieved with great difficulty after many years.
My dear citizens, we presented our 2027 Central Government Budget Proposal to the discretion of our Gazi Assembly last week. We calculate the expenses as 27 trillion 276 billion liras and the income as 23 trillion 408 billion liras.
