The alarm about the Ankara NATO Leaders Summit continues in the Western press. The summit to be hosted by Türkiye is given wide coverage in the US and European media. Finally, the US-based Bloomberg agency covered the summit. “President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will show why Europe needs Türkiye,” said the news, “NATO meeting in Ankara
“Before the summit, Turkey became the vital base of the alliance with its 10 billion dollar domestic defense industry,” the statement said. Bloomberg analysis emphasized that the S-400 and F-35 crises can be overcome and that Türkiye sees itself as the leader of the European security architecture in the post-US period.

THE MOST CRITICAL SUMMIT

The Ankara Summit, where the historic decisions taken at NATO’s summit held in The Hague last year will be implemented for the first time, will constitute one of the most important turning points after the Cold War as the starting point of the “NATO 3.0” process, which expresses the Alliance’s comprehensive transformation from defense expenditures to force structure, from the defense industry to transatlantic burden sharing.

AGENDA INTENSIVE

There are many critical topics on the leaders’ table that will shape the future of the Alliance, from the implementation of the decisions taken at the Hague Summit last year to increasing defense expenditures, from the implementation of the NATO Force Model to strengthening the production capacity of the defense industry, from the new responsibilities that Europe will undertake to continuing support to Ukraine.

COMING WITH A DELEGATION OF 1000 PEOPLE
US President Donald Trump is expected to arrive in Ankara on the afternoon of July 7 as part of the NATO Leaders Summit. During the program to be held within the scope of the official visit, Trump will be welcomed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan with an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex. Soldiers in special uniforms representing 16 major Turkish states will also take part in the welcoming ceremony.

Within the scope of the program, Erdoğan and Trump are planned to have a one-on-one meeting and then a meeting between delegations.

It is expected that Trump will rest after the talks and then attend the official dinner to be held in honor of NATO leaders at the Presidential Complex. While the US President is expected to come to Ankara with a delegation of more than 1000 people, the visit is considered to be important for the NATO Summit as well as for Türkiye-US relations. Betül USTA/ANKARA

TRUMP WILL COME WITH HIS NEW PLANE
US President Donald Trump will come to Ankara with his new plane. The helicopter was disassembled and transported to Türkiye. A test flight was made with the helicopter, which was reassembled by a special team. Trump will use ‘The Beast’ as his vehicle of office.

Qualifications to be sought in the personnel, application form and time, acceptance of the application, reasons for making and terminating the contract, forms and procedures of the record to be given, actions to be taken in cases of failure in duty, failure to adapt and not being able to benefit from them, principles applied in the extension of the contract, necessary conditions for specialist corporals to become specialist sergeants, principles applied for those to be promoted to the petty officer class, subordinate-superior relations and the procedures regarding these matters. The form and other related issues will be regulated by the regulation prepared jointly by the Ministries of National Defense and Internal Affairs.

With the amendment made to the Law on the Regulation of Public Finance and Debt Management, it is aimed to authorize the Minister of National Defense or the Minister of Internal Affairs, depending on their interest, to manage the accounts opened in foreign currency at the Central Bank in order to ensure more effective, economic and efficient use of the funds allocated to the budgets of the ministries of National Defense and Internal Affairs in order to initiate, maintain and develop relations with friendly and allied countries within the scope of grants and aid activities for defense and security purposes to be made to foreign countries and organizations on behalf of Turkey and to direct the following periods.

Accordingly, the President or individuals and organizations determined by the Presidential Decree will be authorized to negotiate and sign agreements regarding grants and aid for defense and security purposes to foreign countries and organizations on behalf of the Republic of Turkey. Grants and aid provisions to be given to foreign countries for this purpose will be covered from the appropriations to be placed in the budgets of the ministries of National Defense and Internal Affairs. The agreements in question will enter into force with the Presidential Decree. The cash grants and aid specified in the agreement can be recorded as an expense in the budget and transferred to a foreign currency account opened at the Central Bank. The relevant minister to whom appropriations are placed in the budget will be authorized to manage the opened accounts. Payments will be made from the relevant account within the framework of the provisions of the agreement and the principles to be determined by the Ministry of Treasury and Finance.

PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS AND ORGANIZATIONS WILL ALLOCATE 10 PERCENT OF THE TOTAL QUOTA AND APPOINTMENT PERMITS

The “Public Employment” provision of the Contracted Private and Private Law is being amended. Accordingly, without prejudice to compulsory situations arising from mobilization, war or the fight against terrorism, those who have completed at least 7 years of service as contracted sergeants and privates, those who have a positive qualification certificate, and provided that they meet the conditions other than the exam conditions in the relevant legislation and are not over 41 years of age as of the date of application, public institutions and organizations will be employed as execution and protection officers, market and neighborhood guards, forest conservation officers, administrative surveillance personnel, protection and security officers, police officers, firefighters, drivers and support personnel. can be appointed to contracted positions within the framework of the procedures and principles in this article, within the quota and appointment permissions.

Applications of those who want to benefit from this provision will be received every year and their personal information regarding the recruitment conditions will be notified to the Ministry of Labor and Social Security by the Ministry of Internal Affairs or National Defense by the last day of October. It will be essential to renew the application every year. Notifying the information of the relevant personnel will not constitute a right for appointment alone.

Public institutions and organizations will be obliged to allocate 10 percent of the total quota and appointment permits to be recruited within the scope of this provision in the personnel recruitments to be made that year for the staff and contracted titles of execution and protection officers, market and neighborhood guards, forest conservation officers, administrative surveillance personnel, protection and security officers, police officers, firefighters, drivers and support personnel, and notify the Ministry of Labor and Social Security with the recruitment conditions until the end of December. Provided that 10 percent of the previous year’s quotas or appointment permits reported to the Ministry are used in the new year, they will not be subject to the new year’s open and transferred appointment numbers.

For those on the list sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs or the Ministry of National Defense, placements will be made or will be made in one go to the quotas notified by public institutions or organizations by the Ministry of Labor and Social Security to determine the candidates who will be subjected to an oral examination until March 1 of each year. Among those who meet the conditions in the guide to be published, candidates 4 times the quota will be determined by lottery method, taking into account their preferences. Information about those who are appointed among those who are successful in the oral exam to be held within 3 months by the commissions formed by the relevant institution, will be notified by the relevant public institution and organization to the Ministry of Labor and Social Security, the institution where the public personnel information system is located, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs or National Defense, depending on its relevance, by the relevant public institution and organization within one month of their appointment.

In the oral exam to be held by the commission established by the relevant institution, candidates will be evaluated on the basis of their “general culture and general ability”, “understanding and summarizing a subject, ability to express and reasoning power”, “merit, representation ability, suitability of their attitudes and behaviors for the task”, “self-confidence, persuasiveness and credibility”, “openness to scientific and technological developments”. Each member of the examination board will evaluate the candidates out of 20 points for each of the characteristics written in the paragraphs, and the scores given will be recorded separately in the minutes. It will be calculated how many points each member gave to the candidate in total out of 100 full points. The oral exam score of the staff will be determined by taking the arithmetic average of the scores given by all members out of 100.

Contracted non-commissioned officers and privates who leave after completing 7 years of service will not be required to have a private security basic education consisting of theoretical, practical and weapons training, not less than 120 course hours in the Law on Private Security Services; at least 8 years of primary or secondary school education will not be required for those who will perform unarmed duties; and at least a high school or equivalent school graduation requirement will not be required for those who will perform armed duties.

The appointed personnel will benefit from the financial and other rights of the staff or position to which they are appointed, starting from the date of commencement of duty. Their service periods as contracted sergeants and privates will be evaluated in determining their earned rights, salaries, grades and levels, by counting as 1 grade advancement for each year and 1 grade advancement for every 3 years, provided that they do not exceed the grades they can be promoted to according to their education status stipulated in the Civil Servants Law. Within the scope of this provision, those appointed to civil servant positions cannot be appointed to another title for at least 4 years. Those who do not start their duties despite receiving appointment approval and those who leave their duties for any reason after starting cannot be re-employed within the scope of this article. Those who are appointed to these titles declared by public institutions and organizations, in any way, will be deemed to have used the right granted in this regulation.

Procedures and principles regarding application, notification, lottery, appointment and other transactions will be regulated by a regulation to be jointly issued by the ministries of Labor and Social Security, Internal Affairs and National Defense. The Ministry of Labor and Social Security will be authorized to resolve any doubts that may arise within the scope of this provision, to request the necessary information and documents, to conduct research and examination, and to direct the implementation.

PROCEDURES AND PRINCIPLES FOR PROCEEDING TO THE SENIOR SPECIALIST

According to the change in the procedures, principles and conditions regarding the promotion of contracted sergeants and privates to the rank of specialist sergeants, the requirement to be successful in the physical qualification and evaluation test and written and/or interview exams will be required.

The regulation also determines the evaluation principles for physical qualification and evaluation tests, as well as written and interview exams. Accordingly, if a written exam is held, the written exam will include general culture subjects and professional knowledge subjects. At least 50 points out of 100 will be required in the written exam. The written exam may be administered by the Ministry of Internal Affairs or National Defense, or by other public institutions and organizations or universities, depending on the interest.

In order to be considered successful in the physical qualification and evaluation test, the candidate must get at least 50 points out of 100 from each of the tests to be applied and the arithmetic average of the scores obtained from these tests must be at least 60 points.

In case of an interview exam, the chairman and members of the interview team will be determined by the Ministry of Internal Affairs or National Defense, depending on their interest. More than one delegation may be formed depending on the number of candidates. During the interview, candidates will be evaluated out of 100 full points in terms of general appearance, ability to understand what is asked of them, self-confidence, CV, personality, psychological structure, ability to express themselves, ability to use body language, emotional balance, extroversion, adaptability, responsibility, openness, suitability for the profession and willingness. The interview exam score of the candidate will be determined by taking the average of the grades evaluated independently by each member. The candidate participating in the interview exam will be required to score a minimum of 70 points.

The proportions of the physical qualification and evaluation test and written and/or interview exams within the evaluation score based on success ranking will be determined by the Ministry of Internal Affairs or National Defense, depending on their relevance.

In case of equality of evaluation scores based on the success ranking, priority will be given to the one with the higher physical qualification and evaluation test scores first, and if the equality continues, to the one with longer actual service time, and if this is also equal, priority will be given to the one taking into account the education level, rank status and reward or penalty points, respectively.

After the proposal was accepted, Deputy Speaker of the Parliament Tekin Bingöl closed the meeting to meet at 15.00 on Tuesday, July 14.

Vice President Yılmaz, in his speech here, said the following: “Dear Minister, esteemed representatives of our maritime industry, valued guests, I greet you with love, respect and affection on behalf of myself and our President, Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. I am very pleased to host you in Istanbul, which brings together continents, civilizations and seaways, at the 5th Maritime Summit held on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the entry into force of our Cabotage Law. I say “Welcome, you have brought joy” to all the guests who attended the Summit from different corners of our country. I hope that the 5th Maritime Summit will be successful and create a basis for discussions that enlighten our horizons. Dear participants, yesterday, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the entry into force of our Cabotage Law, we once again commemorated the glorious journey of Turkish maritime from the past to the future. I wish that the Cabotage Day will be beneficial for our Heroic Naval Forces, our maritime industry, our country and our nation. I congratulate the Cabotage Day of our entire nation, especially our sailors. I commemorate with gratitude all those who worked hard to bring Turkish maritime to this day and who paid the price when necessary, and I pray for God’s mercy on the sailors we sent away to eternity.

A HERITAGE IN MARITIME THAT EXTENDS FOR CENTURIES

We are a country that is geographically surrounded by seas on three sides and has given great importance to maritime throughout our history. We are the grandchildren of ancestors who were strong, determined, determined and genius enough to sail their ships from land when necessary. Our maritime adventure, which started with ÇAKA BEY in these lands, has turned into a great epic written with glory and honor in history with the heroic stories of Karamürsel Beys, Piri Reiss, Barbaros, Seydi Ali Reis. From the first ports of the Seljuks to the Mediterranean, to the powerful navy of the Ottoman Empire, which ruled three continents and turned the Mediterranean into a “Turkish lake”, maritime has always had an exceptional place for us. Tersane-i Âmire, where we are meeting with you now, the construction of which started by the order of Sultan Fatih, has an important share in our historical heritage. While Tersane-i Âmire improves Turkish maritime in terms of production, technology and engineering and paves the way for new victories; It has ensured the institutionalization of our maritime acquis with the captains, naval architects, masters and soldiers it has trained. In addition to being one of the important elements of our military, economic, commercial and diplomatic power, the seas have been one of the most powerful opportunities for our nation to carry its civilizational accumulation to different geographies throughout history. Today, this historical heritage gains a stronger meaning with the understanding of the Blue Homeland; It refers to the protection of our sovereign rights in the seas, the development of our maritime capacity and the most effective use of the opportunities offered by our seas. Just as every inch of our homeland has indispensable value for us, our seas are a national value that we must protect, develop and entrust to future generations with the same understanding.

NEW GLOBAL COMPETITION IN THE SEAS

Developments in the world point to a new era in which balances are reshaped in many areas, from global politics to trade routes, from energy corridors to supply chains. In this process where the international system evolves into a multipolar structure, the seas are becoming one of the main areas of economic competition and geostrategic struggle. Today, when approximately 90 percent of world trade is carried out by sea, maritime has become one of the most determining elements of global production, trade and logistics. Surrounded by seas on three sides, with straits connecting the Black Sea to the Mediterranean, and located at the intersection of Europe, Asia and Africa, Türkiye is at the center of this new global picture. Dear guests, our history, our geographical location, and the new picture revealed by global geopolitics shape our perspective on maritime. Achieving all our goals, from export to trade, from tourism to defense and security; It requires us to be strong at sea and in maritime. In the last 23 years, we have seen maritime as one of our strategic priorities and shaped our policies accordingly. We achieved the successes we are proud of today by strengthening our maritime infrastructure, which was behind the level we desired when we took office.

HISTORICAL GROWTH IN PORTS AND FLEET

Türkiye today; It is one of the world’s leading maritime countries with 218 port facilities, 65 marinas, 85 active shipyards, 400 fishing shelters, 181 boat manufacturing and slipyards, 23 ship recycling facilities, 51 pools (11 dry and 40 floating), 144 thousand seafarers and more than 1 million amateur sailors.
Our Turkish-owned maritime fleet ranked 17th with 8.9 million deadweight tons in 2002; As of 2026, it has risen to 11th place, with 2 thousand 234 ships and a capacity of 51.8 million deadweight tons. Our 5 ports, Ambarlı, Kocaeli, Tekirdağ, Mersin and Aliağa, are currently among the 100 busiest ports in the world. In 2025, we served 62 thousand 656 ships in our ports. The number of cruise ships calling at our ports increased by 15.1 percent compared to the previous year, reaching 1,375; The number of passengers reached 2.2 million.

CENTER OF ATTRACTION IN YACHT TOURISM

We have made our country a center of attraction in yacht tourism with the new marinas we have built in the last 23 years and the ever-increasing mooring capacity.
We increased the number of marinas, which were 41 in 2002, to 65 by opening our Gazipaşa Marina. We increased our mooring capacity from 8,500 to 26 thousand. Last year, we carried nearly 119 million passengers and 9 million 600 thousand vehicles with our companies operating on cabotage lines. On the other hand, our shipbuilding industry, which employs more than 84 thousand brothers, is in a strong and influential position on a global scale. Our shipbuilding industry, which ranks 7th in the world in ship orders and 10th in tonnage, has risen to second place in the world in mega yacht manufacturing. In the field of ship recycling, we are the 3rd in the world and the leader in Europe. Dear sailor brothers, we have been continuing the SCT-free fuel support we started in 2004 uninterruptedly for 22 years. To date, we have provided a total of 21.8 billion lira of support to our sector. We continued to support our maritime industry with the support of 5.3 billion lira we provided in 2025 alone.

STRONG POSITION IN INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING

We are constantly expanding our maritime cooperation network internationally. To date, we have signed 65 maritime agreements with 51 countries; Last year, we were elected to the International Maritime Organization Council, of which we have been an uninterrupted member since 1999, for the 14th time with a high percentage of votes. We have been increasing the fees collected from ships passing through our straits without a stopover with the updates we have made since 2022. We will continue to provide these updates each Cabotage Festival. We maintain our uncompromising stance on maritime safety and security, and continue the necessary work for the safe evacuation of our ships stranded due to the war in the Persian Gulf. We expect freedom of navigation to be fully implemented in an environment where the war ends and permanent peace is achieved.

MARITIME VISION IN THE TURKISH CENTURY

Dear participants, our vision for the Türkiye Century; It also expresses the goal of a Türkiye that is stronger on the seas, more competitive in maritime, and has a say on a global scale with its ports, shipyards and merchant fleet. Under the leadership of our President; We will continue to build Türkiye, which resolutely protects its rights and interests in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Black Sea and the Aegean and strengthens its maritime capacity in every field. With the strong cooperation we have established between our public institutions and our private sector and the knowledge, experience and knowledge of our maritime community, we will take our country much further in this field in the coming period.

I believe that the cooperation we will continue to develop in this field with friendly and brotherly countries will produce beneficial results for everyone. With these thoughts, we hope that the 5th Maritime Summit will be beneficial; I would like to thank all members of our Ministry who contributed to the organization of the Summit, especially our Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, our valuable speakers who contributed to the program, all representatives of our maritime industry and everyone who worked for the development of Turkish maritime. “I congratulate you once again on your Cabotage Day and greet you with love, respect and affection.”

“THE SCREEN USED FOR SYSTEM SETTINGS WILL NOT BE PENALIZED”

Regarding multimedia and smart screens, Çiftçi said, “No penalty will be applied to factory-made screens and screens used for navigation, parking support, interior and exterior cameras, recording devices and system settings.” he stated.

Regarding in-car audio systems, Minister Çiftçi said:

“It will be possible to use sound systems, subwoofers and amplifiers that comply with the specified technical standards. As long as the sound does not disturb the public peace by spilling out of the vehicle, no criminal action will be taken just because there is a sound system in the vehicle. In order to take action regarding the sound systems, it will be necessary to concretely detect and record that the sound is disturbing the peace of the environment by spilling outside the vehicle.”

Çiftçi stated that the use of individual audio and video devices placed on the seats or in suitable areas within the vehicle, which are available to passengers in buses and minibuses, will continue and said, “We will continue to work with an understanding that clarifies the rules, ensures unity in practice, protects the rights of our drivers and never compromises traffic safety.” he said.

Breaking News… Breaking News… Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan made important statements in a program he attended. Stating that Israel continues its aggression in the region and is looking for a new enemy, Minister Fidan said, “Israel is the common problem of all humanity.”

“THE POINT Türkiye HAS REACHED IS IMPORTANT”

Minister Fidan, who also made a statement about the NATO Summit, stated that Trump will attend the NATO summit and said, “This is important news for the NATO community. Moreover, Mr. Trump is participating in this because Mr. Erdoğan invited him. If it were not Mr. Erdoğan who invited him, he would not have attended. This has now become a great strategic equation. When you take into consideration today’s challenges, conflicts, troubles and slippage in the alliance, you see how big a role this equation plays. Here, our President’s global leadership vision, the relationship network he developed, the trust he created, the people he created.” “The prestige in his eyes and the point Türkiye has reached are important.”

DETAILS COMING…