Politics
Erdoğan lauds work to spare Türkiye from turmoil amid Israeli tensions
Addressing a gathering of mukhtars (village and neighborhood headmen) on the occasion of Mukhtars’ Day on Monday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Türkiye was surrounded by a “ring of fire.” “We work day and night to spare Türkiye from the turmoil in the region,” he said, referring to Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia that killed more than a dozen people at an airport in Riyadh earlier this month. He also warned against “Zionist Israel doing everything to stir up strife in Syria.”
The president lamented that Israel continued its attacks on Palestine despite cease-fire deals.
“We managed to keep our country away from the conflicts around it. We have not fallen for incitement or provocation. We managed tough processes sensibly and patiently. But as long as we bravely stand with the oppressed, regardless of their faith, just as our ancestors did, they are going to work against us,” he said, in reference to Israel. “We will remain alert to those trying to dash the hopes of our nation, undermine our morale and sow the seeds of discord in our nation,” he added.
“We are in the middle of a great struggle,” he said, also warning against “those seeking to tear our region to shreds.”
Erdoğan’s statements follow Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s press conference over the weekend, during which he signaled a direct confrontation with Türkiye in the future. Netanyahu often portrays Türkiye as a threat as part of his campaign ahead of upcoming elections. The Israeli prime minister and his ministers have threatened Türkiye and sought to discredit the Erdoğan administration through anti-Turkish rhetoric, while Erdoğan has raised the issue of Israel’s genocide of Palestinians on every possible platform. Most recently, he highlighted Israel’s crimes at the United Nations General Assembly in New York last September.
“A storm of crises, growing increasingly severe, is sweeping through our region. The Russia-Ukraine war, just to our north, will enter its fifth year in a few months. Israel’s attacks on Palestine continue unabated despite the agreements signed. Before tensions in our neighbor Iran have fully subsided, a new conflict has now been ignited in Yemen. The Houthi attacks targeting our friend and brother, Saudi Arabia, have further escalated tensions in our region. In the attack they carried out on the airport in Riyadh, many of our Muslim brothers and sisters, including pilgrims traveling for Umrah, lost their lives. Hundreds more were injured,” Erdoğan highlighted. Türkiye has pledged military assistance to Saudi Arabia in the face of Houthi attacks and is part of the Mecca Defense Alliance, which stems from a joint defense agreement Erdoğan signed with Saudi and Pakistani officials in August.
“Unfortunately, the situation in Lebanon is far from encouraging either. We are receiving good news from Syria, but Zionist Israel is doing everything it can to sow discord there as well,” Erdoğan also said. Israel struck Abu Duhur Air Base in Syria last August, claiming that Türkiye would move its troops there, following the fall of the Baathist regime in Syria.
“Remember, great nations face great tests. Throughout history, the Turkish nation has faced truly great trials, just as it has achieved great victories and waged great struggles,” Erdoğan said.
“Sometimes they will target us through their agents operating within our country under the guise of righteousness, such as FETÖ, sometimes through their lobbies abroad, sometimes through their economic hitmen; sometimes through their proxies in the international media and sometimes through their instruments on social media,” Erdoğan also said. The Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ) targeted Erdoğan in 2016, with a coup attempt by its military infiltrators. Erdoğan escaped the assassination attempt by the group during the coup bid, which was thwarted, at the cost of more than 250 people who died while resisting putschists.
“They will try to distract us and divert us from our path. They will seek to clip our claws and make us abandon our ambitions. God willing, we will not give them that opportunity. We will not bow to those who seek to build a system of prosperity for themselves by exploiting the world and turning our region into a sea of blood. We will remain extremely vigilant against dark and dirty schemes and all such plots. We will stay alert to those who seek to pit Muslims against one another. We will always remain on guard against those who try to shatter our nation’s hopes, undermine its morale and erect walls of discord among us,” Erdoğan also said.
New Party (YP) will stay new, so to speak, as the Constitutional Court dismissed a case on Wednesday for the annulment of the name of the main opposition party.
In September, the court gave YP one month to present a defense in the lawsuit originally filed by Innovation Party (“Yenilik Partisi”), also abbreviated as YP. The smaller party requested a name change for the New Party, citing concerns that the name of the party founded last July may cause confusion among voters. The case was brought before the Constitutional Court by the General Prosecution Office, which handles cases related to political parties’ affairs. The Constitutional Court then asked the New Party to present its defense, which was done earlier this month. YP has claimed that the name would not impact the electorate’s choice, as they were aware of the distinction between parties, both in terms of the unabbreviated names of parties and their logos.
The Innovation Party was founded by former Ambassador Öztürk Yılmaz in 2020. Yılmaz served as a lawmaker with the Republican People’s Party (CHP) between 2015 and 2018, before Özgür Özel became CHP chair. Özel was forced out of office last May when a court ruled that his tenure should be nullified over allegations of vote-buying in a 2023 intraparty election. Özel initially planned to fight the verdict through an appeal process but later declared the founding of the New Party with the participation of dozens of lawmakers from CHP, now making it the main opposition party in Parliament.
Türkiye’s 2019 maritime boundary agreement with Libya is legally and politically legitimate and not open to debate, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said Wednesday, hailing its acceptance by Libya’s House of Representatives as a major diplomatic victory for Ankara.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA) during a visit to Brussels, Fidan said the development vindicated Türkiye’s longstanding position on the agreement, which defines maritime jurisdiction areas between the two Mediterranean countries.
“This is an entirely legitimate agreement, both legally and politically. There is no need to debate it,” Fidan said, dismissing objections from countries opposed to the deal.
Fidan described the Libyan parliament’s move as a diplomatic achievement under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s leadership, emphasizing that the agreement promotes regional stability and mutually beneficial cooperation.
He said Ankara had considered the memorandum valid since its signing in 2019, noting that Turkish legal experts viewed the Libyan legislature’s latest decision as an act of acceptance rather than formal ratification.
“We know why certain countries object. Some oppose it because they feel compelled to, while others have genuine strategic concerns,” he said.
Fidan stressed that Libya’s trust in Türkiye and the agreement’s contribution to stability in the Eastern Mediterranean were particularly significant.
“Our goal is to bring stability, peace and prosperity to the Mediterranean, just as we seek to do everywhere else,” he added.
During his Brussels visit, Fidan also held talks with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, discussing Türkiye-EU relations, regional security and the Russia-Ukraine war.
He also joined Türkiye’s justice and interior ministers for talks with their Belgian counterparts aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation.
Fidan called for sustained engagement with the EU to overcome longstanding obstacles in relations, including issues surrounding Türkiye’s candidate status.
The text of the agreement on the Mecca Defense Alliance was presented to the Parliament on Tuesday for ratification. If the text, sent by the Foreign Ministry, is approved, it will strengthen the legal basis for the alliance formed by Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
Authorities have earlier announced that the issue would be brought before Parliament as the opposition parties urged the government to seek their approval first to implement the requirements of the alliance.
The agreement the alliance is based upon says an attack on one party to the agreement will be deemed as an attack on all. This clause has been repeatedly highlighted as the Houthis in Yemen stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia within weeks of the signing of the defense agreement in Saudi Arabia.
Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş, who is in Kyrgyzstan at the moment, will submit the agreement to Parliament’s Foreign Aaffairs Commission after returning to Türkiye, two Turkish sources told Reuters.
A significant part of the debate surrounding the agreement concerns the scope of the military support Türkiye could provide to Saudi Arabia. At the alliance meeting held in Riyadh on Oct. 5, it was agreed that preparations would be made to deploy the military forces and capabilities agreed upon to Saudi Arabia.
Sources from the Turkish National Defense Ministry said the process would be carried out in accordance with the Constitution and relevant legislation. They also noted that the agreement must be approved by Parliament and that the necessary authorizations for deploying the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) abroad must be completed. With the submission of the bill to Parliament, the process has now been placed on the legislative agenda. The bill’s progress will involve referral to the relevant parliamentary commission and the General Assembly, the decision on approving the agreement, and any related military authorization procedures.
Earlier this month, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan affirmed defense assistance to Saudi Arabia but ruled out active participation of troops in the raging conflict between the Houthis and Saudis. “This is a defense pact, not a pact of offense; Türkiye won’t send troops to another country for attacking another,” he said at a news conference in Ankara.
He also noted that the agreement on the alliance would soon be sent to Parliament for ratification. “We are forming a defense cooperation with Saudi Arabia. We are discussing what type of defense measures are needed through our military delegations, and how Pakistan can contribute. Saudi Arabia already has a major military infrastructure; they have a high amount of weapons, munitions and defense elements accumulated over the years,” Fidan said.
The Sabah newspaper has earlier reported that Türkiye would provide low- and medium-altitude aerial defense systems to Saudi Arabia along with assistance in drone technologies and electronic warfare. The newspaper also reported that Saudi Arabia was working on setting up a base for Türkiye. A Foreign Ministry official told Daily Sabah that the Saudi side conveyed “some expectations” to Türkiye and they would examine those. The move is the most concrete step since the agreement was signed in August by top officials of Türkiye, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to showcase the impact of the alliance in the broader region.
Commenting on the new parliamentary process, Burhanettin Duran, head of the Turkish Presidency’s Communications Directorate, said the move was an important stage in the institutionalization of strategic cooperation between three brotherly countries. In a social media post on Tuesday, Duran said the strategic partnership aimed to strengthen collective deterrence, enhancing joint capabilities in defense, and safeguarding security and stability in the region. “(The agreement), which is based on regional countries’ responsibility to tackle regional issues, is a display of the joint will prioritizing security and solidarity,” he said.
Defense Minister Yaşar Güler affirmed that troops may stay longer in neighboring Iraq and Syria, “until border security is fully ensured.” Güler was answering questions by AFP on Tuesday.
“We are maintaining our military presence in Iraq and Syria. When we assess that the necessary conditions have been met in terms of regional and border security, the status of our base areas and our presence in the region will be reconsidered,” he said in a written answer to AFP questions.
At the height of civil war in Syria, Türkiye launched cross-border offensives, driving out terrorist groups YPG and Daesh from the northern regions close to the border. In Iraq, it carried out operations against the terrorist group PKK which is now in the phase of dissolution after the launch of the terror-free Türkiye initiative in 2024.
Bashiqa-Zilkan, a key Turkish base in Iraq, is expected to be handed over to Iraqi authorities. The development, which comes amid the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country, which remained there as part of an anti-Daesh coalition, signaled the start of a new era for Iraq and Türkiye.
The Ministry of National Defense said in a statement earlier this month that the handover of the base did not mean an end to cooperation with Iraq and, on the contrary, Türkiye would continue supporting Iraq’s security and stability.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced the steps in a joint statement following talks in New York on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
Türkiye welcomed Libya’s unanimous approval of a maritime boundary agreement between the two countries, calling it a significant step toward strengthening bilateral relations and protecting shared interests in the Eastern Mediterranean, Presidential Communications Director Burhanettin Duran said Tuesday.
Duran described the Libyan House of Representatives’ decision as a positive development for bilateral ties and regional cooperation.
He said the approval would help safeguard the two countries’ common rights and interests in the Eastern Mediterranean, support the equitable delimitation of maritime boundaries and strengthen regional cooperation.
Under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s leadership, Türkiye will continue protecting its legitimate rights and interests under its Blue Homeland doctrine while expanding cooperation with Libya, Duran said.
He added that Ankara remains committed to promoting equitable maritime arrangements, peace and stability in the Eastern Mediterranean.
The Foreign Ministry also welcomed the Libyan House of Representatives’ decision.
In a statement, the ministry said the memorandum safeguards the mutual rights and interests of Türkiye and Libya in accordance with international law and the principle of equity, while contributing to deeper bilateral cooperation.
Türkiye reaffirmed its commitment to working with all regional partners to promote security, stability and peace across the Mediterranean basin, emphasizing its continued respect for international law.
The agreement, signed in November 2019 between Türkiye and Libya’s then-U.N.-recognized Government of National Accord, established maritime boundaries between the two countries. It was registered with the United Nations in October 2020 but faced opposition from Libya’s eastern-based parliament, which had previously rejected the deal.
Tuesday’s vote also overturned two resolutions adopted in 2020 that rejected agreements with Türkiye and called for severing political ties with Ankara.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday hailed the contributions of Turkish guest workers to Germany’s postwar prosperity, describing their migration as a success story that helped transform the country’s economy, culture and society over the past 65 years.
Speaking at a ceremony in Berlin marking the 65th anniversary of the German-Turkish labor recruitment agreement, Merz praised generations of Turkish workers for helping establish Germany’s industrial foundations and contributing to its continued economic and cultural development.
“Turkish guest workers helped build the industrial foundation of our country,” Merz said, referring to those who arrived following the Oct. 30, 1961, agreement. “They helped build the foundations of our nation. They created the infrastructure of the prosperity in which we live today.”
Merz said decades of interaction between the two communities had helped shape modern German society.
“Germans and Turks became modern, open-minded and tolerant through encounters with each other in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s,” he said.
He added that Germany had become culturally, economically, scientifically and even through its cuisine richer thanks to migration from Türkiye, emphasizing that the country continued to need skilled workers from abroad.
The agreement brought hundreds of thousands of Turkish workers to West Germany during its postwar economic boom. Although many initially planned to return home after a few years, a significant number remained, reunited with their families and gradually became an integral part of German society.
Merz highlighted the achievements of subsequent generations, citing prominent German-Turkish figures including footballer Ilkay Gündoğan, filmmaker Fatih Akın and BioNTech founders Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci, whose research in oncology and immunology has gained international recognition. He also mentioned writers Aras Ören and Deniz Utlu.
“These are just the widely known figures – the particularly spectacular success stories,” he said. “Yet there are thousands of others. They can be found in every federal state, in every sector of our society, across all political parties, within labor unions, and in employers’ associations.”
The chancellor described integration as a continuing responsibility shared by migrants and German society, emphasizing the importance of mutual respect and equal opportunities.
He said newcomers were expected to uphold Germany’s democratic principles, including gender equality and responsibility toward Jewish people. In return, those who integrate should be able to expect equal opportunities and a sense of belonging regardless of their migration background.
Merz also acknowledged that many Turkish Germans across the first, second and third generations continued to face discrimination and exclusion despite their contributions.
“Fear of the foreign is poison for every free society,” he warned, expressing concern that anti-immigrant sentiment was increasingly being exploited for political purposes.
He recalled deadly racist attacks in Mölln, Solingen and Hanau, as well as murders committed by the neo-Nazi National Socialist Underground (NSU) terrorist group, whose victims included eight people of Turkish origin.
The chancellor also condemned the term “remigration,” used by politicians from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, describing it as an attack on the multicultural society built over decades.
“Behind it lies an attack on modern Germany, which we have built together over the past 65 years,” he said.
Germany’s Integration Commissioner Natalie Pawlik echoed concerns about growing racism and discrimination, warning that members of migrant communities were increasingly experiencing exclusion.
“We are seeing how people are once again openly excluded,” Pawlik said, noting that the trend was fueling fear among affected communities.
Turkish Ambassador to Germany Gökhan Turan, who also attended the ceremony, described the numerous events commemorating the anniversary as a testament to the longstanding friendship between Türkiye and Germany.
The ceremony brought together representatives of the first generation of Turkish guest workers alongside their children and grandchildren, highlighting the community’s enduring role in German society.
The landmark recruitment agreement, signed Oct. 30, 1961, was initially designed as a temporary arrangement to address labor shortages in West Germany’s rapidly expanding economy, with employment limited to two years.
The restriction was lifted in 1964, allowing workers to remain longer and facilitating family reunification.
Between 1961 and 1973, approximately 867,000 Turkish men and women traveled to West Germany under the recruitment program, finding employment primarily in the Ruhr region’s coal mines, factories and industrial production lines.
About 500,000 eventually returned to Türkiye, while others settled permanently, establishing communities that would grow through subsequent generations and family reunification.
Today, Germany is home to approximately 3 million people of Turkish origin, making them one of the country’s largest immigrant-origin communities and a significant part of its social, economic and cultural landscape.
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