Türkiye’s Parliament on Monday passed a landmark 12-article law supporting the country’s “Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative, following months of political efforts led by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Chairperson Devlet Bahçeli.

The Law on Strengthening National Solidarity and Social Integration was approved with 468 votes in favor and 88 against. A total of 562 lawmakers took part in the vote, with six abstentions.

The legislation cleared the General Assembly after lawmakers completed deliberations on all 12 articles. It had previously been approved by Parliament’s Justice Committee following a marathon session lasting over 17 hours.

Communications Director Burhanettin Duran hailed the law’s passage as an important demonstration of the political resolve behind Türkiye’s “Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative.

Duran said the historic step would further strengthen national unity and solidarity and contribute to Türkiye’s goal of permanently eliminating terrorism and moving toward a safer future.

He thanked lawmakers, political parties and others involved throughout the legislative process, saying the measure adopted under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s leadership should become a lasting achievement for future generations.

Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş, meanwhile, described the vote as a “historic achievement,” saying the level of parliamentary consensus was rarely seen even in constitutional votes.

“This success does not belong to a single party; it is a success for all of Türkiye,” Kurtulmuş told reporters after the vote.

Describing the “Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative as a “Türkiye model” developed without outside mediation, Kurtulmuş said the next stage would focus on the terrorist organization fully laying down its arms and dissolving itself.

He also credited Erdoğan’s political leadership and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Chairperson Devlet Bahçeli’s support for advancing the process, while thanking political parties and lawmakers for their contributions.

Justice Minister Akın Gürlek also welcomed the legislation, saying the “Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative would help the country leave behind the heavy costs of terrorism and make peace, security and fraternity permanent.

Gürlek said the legislation would further strengthen national unity as Türkiye advances its “Century of Türkiye” vision and thanked Erdoğan, Bahçeli, Kurtulmuş, political parties and lawmakers for their roles in the process.

The vote represents a key parliamentary milestone in the “Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative, which seeks to permanently end terrorism and oversee the disarmament and dissolution of the PKK terrorist group.

Speaking before the final vote, ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) Deputy Chair Efkan Ala said the broad parliamentary backing demonstrated the level of political consensus surrounding the initiative.

Ala said 367 lawmakers had initially signed the legislative proposal, with additional lawmakers adding their support afterward.

He also outlined the expected next stages of the process, saying developments would be monitored by a parliamentary commission after the legislation enters into force.

According to Ala, authorities would verify the surrender of weapons and ammunition as well as the terrorist group’s dissolution on the ground. The findings would then be assessed by the National Security Council (MGK), with subsequent decisions published in the Official Gazette.

“The terrorist organization will be dismantled with all its elements, both at home and abroad, including in Europe,” Ala said.

New Party Chairperson Özgür Özel also announced his party’s support for the legislation during the General Assembly debate, saying it would not stand in the way of efforts to achieve peace.

“We will not stand in the way of peace so that we no longer receive news of martyrs,” Özel said. “We will vote ‘yes’ on this law.”

Özel said political parties had a responsibility to prevent further loss of life and argued that lasting peace ultimately belonged to the Turkish people.

MHP leader Bahçeli was seen applauding Özel’s remarks in Parliament, underscoring the broad political support behind the legislation despite differences among the parties over aspects of the process.

The legislation forms a central component of the broader “Terror-Free Türkiye” initiative, which has gathered momentum through a series of political and institutional steps aimed at eliminating the PKK’s armed presence and bringing the decadeslong terrorism problem to an end.

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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday called for deeper economic and strategic cooperation between Türkiye and Austria while urging the European Union to move forward on modernizing the Customs Union and advancing visa liberalization.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker, Erdoğan said the two leaders discussed the full scope of bilateral ties, as well as Türkiye-EU relations and key regional and global developments.

Erdoğan said Türkiye attaches importance to the well-being and prosperity of the Turkish community in Austria, adding that the issue was also raised during their talks.

Regarding Türkiye’s relations with the European Union, Erdoğan said he conveyed Ankara’s expectations to Stocker during their meeting.

“I emphasized that steps to be taken by the European Union, particularly on modernizing the Customs Union and the visa liberalization dialogue, would be in all of our interests,” Erdoğan said.

The leaders also discussed regional conflicts, with Erdoğan reiterating Türkiye’s commitment to Syria’s territorial integrity and unity and saying Ankara values Austria’s potential contribution to the country’s reconstruction.

On the Middle East, Erdoğan reaffirmed Türkiye’s support for a two-state solution, describing it as indispensable for lasting peace in the region.

He also stressed the importance of ensuring the uninterrupted delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza, an issue he said Stocker also viewed with particular sensitivity.

Erdoğan added that Türkiye and Austria attach great importance to maintaining stability in the Balkans and voiced hope that the recent positive momentum in bilateral relations would continue.

Stocker, meanwhile, praised Türkiye’s role in efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war and commended Erdoğan’s personal diplomatic efforts toward finding a resolution to the conflict.

Pointing to growing economic ties, Erdoğan said Türkiye and Austria have maintained positive momentum in bilateral trade and expressed confidence that trade volume would reach the countries’ $5 billion target this year, up from around $4 billion in 2022.

More than 1,000 Austrian companies currently operate in Türkiye, while Austrian direct investment in the country has exceeded $11 billion. Turkish investments in Austria, meanwhile, are approaching $1 billion, Erdoğan said.

“All these figures are the clearest indication of the potential between us,” he said.

Erdoğan proposed establishing an Economic and Trade Partnership Committee to replace the existing Joint Economic Commission mechanism, saying the new structure could help further develop the two countries’ longstanding economic relations.

He said Türkiye hopes to hold the committee’s first meeting before the end of the year.

Türkiye and Austria also have significant potential for cooperation in green energy, critical minerals, high technology, transportation and the defense industry, Erdoğan said.

He particularly highlighted opportunities for strategic cooperation aimed at strengthening the Middle Corridor, a key trade and transportation route connecting Asia and Europe.

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Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held separate phone calls with his French and German counterparts on Monday, days after Türkiye signed a trilateral defense agreement with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.

Fidan spoke with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, according to Turkish Foreign Ministry sources.

The ministers discussed regional developments during the calls, the sources said.

The talks came after President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement on Aug. 7.

The trilateral agreement seeks to deepen defense cooperation between Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and strengthen commitments to regional and global security, stability and burden-sharing.

The agreement has drawn attention as Ankara expands its defense partnerships and diplomatic engagement across the region.

Minister Fidan said Saturday that the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement is technically the same as Article 5 of the NATO treaty concerning collective defense.

He underlined that the agreement signed by Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan aims to contribute to lasting stability in the region.

“There is no common threat that we have put in writing,” Fidan noted, adding that the agreement does not target any country that does not attack its signatories.

Fidan described the signing of the agreement as a “historic day,” saying it represented one of the milestones that Türkiye had been pursuing for years under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s leadership.

Fidan noted the agreement had received strong support, particularly from countries in the Islamic world, including countries that were not members but were almost as pleased with the agreement as if they themselves had joined it.

He said there were also supporters in the West who understood the substance of the initiative.

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The ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) filed two complaints on Monday challenging the result of the election for a new deputy mayor of Istanbul’s Üsküdar district, as well as the election process itself.

The district, a former AK Party stronghold, was lost to the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in the 2024 local elections. Mayor Sinem Dedetaş was arrested in July on corruption charges, triggering an election to choose an acting mayor. CHP candidate Sibel Tan Çetinkaya won the election, receiving 22 votes from municipal assembly members in the fourth round on Aug. 5. The AK Party, however, alleged irregularities in the voting process.

Speaking to reporters outside the courthouse where they filed their complaints, AK Party Üsküdar District Chair Taha Sarıcaoğlu said they would also file a lawsuit at the administrative court seeking the annulment of the election and the municipal assembly’s decision, as well as a rerun of the election.

Sarıcaoğlu said the election should be regarded not only as a reflection of the political groups represented in the assembly but also of the will of the people of Üsküdar as expressed at the ballot box.

He said protecting the will of assembly members was a fundamental requirement of democracy, but alleged that incidents during the election process had cast a shadow over the free expression of that will. He said practices that raised questions about election security and the principle of a secret ballot had taken place in full public view.

He said six CHP assembly members voted in favor of Dündar Ziya Gültekin, the candidate of the People’s Alliance, comprising the AK Party and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), in the third round, after which the election was interrupted in a manner contrary to the normal course of proceedings. He said their requests for the election to continue without an adjournment or interruption were not heeded.

Speaking about what happened during the break, Sarıcaoğlu said: “It was alleged that CHP assembly members were threatened in their group room by the provincial chairman of a party whose name is ‘New’ but whose practices and conduct are old, and that they were pressured to change their preferences in the final round.”

He was referring to Özgür Çelik of the New Party (YP), which was established last month by former CHP Chair Özgür Özel. Çelik, who was previously the CHP’s Istanbul provincial chairperson, joined the YP after leaving the CHP.

“Indeed, the picture changed after the break, and it became necessary to assess the change that occurred between the third and fourth rounds together with the allegations of threats, blackmail and pressure during the break,” Sarıcaoğlu said.

He also addressed disputes over the validity of some ballots in the fourth round, saying votes were deemed invalid based on different interpretations of letters and markings appearing on the ballots.

Saying that what happened in this round further deepened the controversy surrounding the election process, Sarıcaoğlu displayed the ballots in his possession and said: “The letter G on this ballot was interpreted as a 6,” referring to the initial of his candidate’s surname. “Another absurdity in legal terms, although it may sound somewhat comical, was that the letter Z was interpreted as a T and a 2. Another arbitrary action was to deem invalid a vote cast for our candidate, Dündar Ziya Gültekin, because of a line drawn to make the letter K more prominent.”

Sarıcaoğlu said Assembly Chair Ali Aral had said during the counting of the votes: “The votes got mixed up. I mixed up the votes. Which one was invalid?” He said the confusion over which ballots the votes and objections related to raised serious questions about the reliability of the election.

Sarıcaoğlu said the validity of votes should be assessed solely within the framework of the relevant regulations, noting that the ballots were not pre-printed and that assembly members had written the candidates’ names and surnames by hand.

“If it is clear from the name written which candidate was chosen, that vote is valid. The appearance of a letter, its curvature, rewriting it or its resemblance to a number cannot make that vote invalid,” Sarıcaoğlu said.

Sarıcaoğlu said the result of the fourth round was announced twice during the session, each time differently, and that a correction was subsequently announced. He claimed that the vote distribution in the corrected announcement also did not correspond with the situation recorded during the counting of the ballots.

Sarıcaoğlu said these incidents could also be seen in footage recorded inside the Üsküdar Municipality assembly chamber.

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Turkish Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş met Austrian Chancellor Christian Stocker in Ankara on Monday, with talks focusing on strengthening bilateral and interparliamentary cooperation as well as regional and global developments.

Kurtulmuş received Stocker at Parliament in Ankara on Monday as part of the Austrian leader’s official visit to Türkiye.

During the meeting, Kurtulmuş and Stocker discussed bilateral relations, with particular emphasis on cooperation between the two countries’ parliaments, as well as regional and global developments.

The two officials also exchanged views on steps that could further strengthen ties between Türkiye and Austria.

Kurtulmuş thanked Stocker for his visit and expressed hope that the talks would contribute to further deepening Türkiye-Austria relations.

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The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement was the surprise alliance of the week in a region embroiled in turmoil. Although negotiations were underway for some time to build the pact among Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, it was only after its signing that the details fully surfaced.

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who was present during the signing of the deal in the Saudi city where Islam was born, explained it in detail in a lengthy interview and reassured that it was a “defense deal,” not a means to attack any specific country. Fidan also signaled that Egypt might join the trio in the near future.

The agreement embodies the spirit of alliance among three countries that already enjoy close ties. One of its highlights is that it stipulates that an attack on one of the parties would be deemed an attack on all and, therefore, would require a joint response.

It came against the backdrop of the U.S.-Israel-Iran war, which has spread across the region, with Iran targeting other countries it views as supportive of the U.S. and disrupting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea.

“I believe that at the next stage, Egypt will also be among us in the alliance. We already act toward one another as if we were alliance members,” Fidan said in an interview with Anadolu Agency (AA) late Saturday. “There are a few technical issues. Once these are resolved, there is no reason for Egypt not to be part of it.”

Fidan said the agreement does not target a specific country. “There is no common threat that we have put in writing,” he said. His remarks were a response to media reports and critics of the agreement who claimed it would prompt joint action against Iran, whose affiliates in Yemen recently targeted Saudi Arabia. Türkiye itself, through NATO defense systems, intercepted several missiles in the early days of the U.S.-Israel-Iran war. On the other hand, Türkiye and Pakistan were at the forefront of efforts to bring the U.S. and Iran to the negotiation table to secure a cease-fire and a lasting peace.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said Friday that the pact was “intended to strengthen collective deterrence.”

Fidan said the agreement was “the most important step toward bringing lasting stability to this region” and suggested the alliance could expand further. “Under our president’s vision, we should not remain limited to three countries. We should grow and, if necessary, bring all countries under this umbrella,” he said. The vision aligns with Türkiye’s peace diplomacy, which seeks to keep Türkiye in close connection with all sides of a conflict and diversify Türkiye’s alliances, which, in the past, were firmly anchored in Western-centric alliances. Türkiye remains committed to NATO and other alliances in the meantime.

Fidan said Saturday that the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement is technically the same as Article 5 of the NATO Treaty concerning collective defense.

Fidan said discussions on the initiative began before the current war environment, when there was no Iran-U.S.-Israel war, but Türkiye anticipated that American security concerns in the region would change, other developments would emerge and its fight against terrorism would remain on the agenda.

He stressed that Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are not expansionist countries.

“Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Türkiye, when you look at their foreign policy positions, are not countries that have expansionist policies. They are countries concerned with their own borders, their own problems and their development; if possible, they want to contribute positively to their environment through good relations and good neighborliness,” he said.

Fidan said the three countries have different styles and capacities, but when brought together, they naturally form a defense-oriented organization rather than an offensive one. “Now, when we come together with these countries, naturally we are becoming a defense-oriented organization. It is not an approach of going on the offensive and saying, ‘Let’s do this or that together.’ Therefore, unless it is attacked by a country, whether from inside or outside the region, this alliance cannot have any dispute with any country. But, of course, the power composition we have put forward will make a constructive contribution to regional stability,” he said, stressing the reasons for advancing the initiative and emphasizing that Iran was not the target of the agreement. He added that countries that do not attack the signatories are not considered targets.

Fidan said the alliance had been examined closely from legal, political, and strategic perspectives and that Türkiye saw no problem with the framework. He also noted that NATO countries had previously concluded similar agreements.

“Under our president’s vision, we should not remain limited to three countries. We should grow and, if necessary, bring all countries under this umbrella,” he said. “The Mecca agreement is the most important step toward bringing lasting stability to this region,” Fidan said, adding that the region has experienced instability in the past century since the withdrawal of the Ottoman Empire.

He described the signing of the agreement as a “historic day,” saying it represented one of the milestones that Türkiye had been pursuing for years under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s leadership.

Fidan said increasing regional ownership of security issues is central to Türkiye’s approach.

“External hegemons coming into the region do not solve the problems; they make them more acute, and the cost becomes very high,” he said, arguing that regional countries should develop more institutional mechanisms through which they can ensure their own security, economic stability, development and prosperity.

Fidan said Türkiye has strong relations with almost all countries in the region. “But these were relations that were largely shaped by the prevailing circumstances, political perceptions and understandings, and could change at any moment.”

He said Ankara seeks to make its regional ties more lasting and structured to promote stability, stressing that lasting economic integration requires security and mutual trust.

Citing the EU as an example, Fidan said the European Economic Community took shape in the environment provided by the American security umbrella. He said Türkiye’s regional vision similarly seeks to reduce instability and eventually foster greater economic and social integration, improving the prosperity of regional populations.

Fidan acknowledged that the initiative is at an early stage and will not be easy to establish, but said Türkiye has already completed the conceptual and institutional preparations. The minister said preparations for the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement had been underway for nearly three years, with talks involving signatories and other regional countries. He said the process evolved from an initial idea into a concept and ultimately an agreement, while Erdoğan had also repeatedly raised the issue with regional leaders.

Fidan said the Mecca initiative is not a new phenomenon within NATO and stressed that Türkiye is a country that is aware of its responsibilities.

“Türkiye is also a country that is aware of its responsibilities. We are in no position to keep these different geographies and different priorities in conflict with one another,” he said.

He said this was an area that needed to be managed and noted that he raised the issue during a meeting with his German counterpart.

Fidan also noted Türkiye’s objective was based on regional ownership and that Ankara had weight in several strategic locations, adding that there had also been serious discussions about what could be done in terms of a security architecture with Europe.

“Türkiye, by virtue of its geography, has a strategic orientation toward Europe and the broader European geography through the Caucasus, Middle East, Black Sea, Mediterranean and Balkans. Here, you need to develop a perspective for each strategic basin and harmonize these perspectives even if areas of tension emerge,” he said.

Türkiye’s experience within NATO had shown that Ankara has different geographic conditions from other members, particularly regarding the Middle East and Caucasus, and those have been analyzed, he said. He said Türkiye’s strategic sphere was broad and that each strategic basin had different positions and conditions, requiring separate approaches. Fidan said Türkiye was seeking to develop security and economic architectures for those areas together with regional countries rather than through a hegemonic approach.

“We are not going with a hegemonic understanding, so we need to do this together with the countries of the region. Following the agreement in the Caucasus, hopefully, there is currently a cease-fire – a cease-fire that is working well. Armenia and Azerbaijan are moving toward a permanent peace agreement, and we support this. While supporting this, we have a security and economic architecture perspective in mind,” he said.

Asked whether a similar structure could be established in the Caucasus and Central Asia, Fidan said those arrangements could be built when necessary, noting that some regions could place greater emphasis on economic needs.

He said the Middle East’s main problem was currently war, mutual distrust and conflict, making it necessary to begin with a security architecture, while Europe was also seeking a new security architecture. Fidan stressed that European and Middle Eastern security architectures could eventually be harmonized through Türkiye “in the long term, and even in the medium term. The intellectual and conceptual preparations for this have actually been established,” he said. He said both regions ultimately sought security, economic development, and the ability to remain competitive, but stressed that such ideas were gradually taking shape and that putting them into practice would take time, with Europe’s transformation likely to take longer.

‘Muslim NATO’

Some Turkish media outlets portrayed the Mecca agreement as the realization of the “Muslim NATO” vision, first voiced by the late Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan, who also happens to be the political mentor of President Erdoğan. Erbakan advocated closer ties with Muslim countries in the face of Türkiye’s past foreign policies, which were largely steered by relations with Europe and the United States. Erbakan often repeated his proposal for strengthening Muslim unity across the world through a joint economic zone, joint currency and military alliance, in the fashion of the EU and NATO. His “Muslim NATO” vision primarily aimed to deter Israel.

Similarly, Devlet Bahçeli, leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), the government ally of Erdoğan’s Justice and Development Party (AK Party), has suggested an Islamic alliance for security repeatedly over the past two years. In a written statement in August 2024, Bahçeli proposed the formation of a “Jerusalem Pact” comprising Türkiye, Syria, Iraq, Egypt and other regional countries to ensure peace in the Middle East. He underlined that the pact was necessary to stop Israel’s attacks on Gaza, for the preservation of Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, and for the safety of Palestinians.

“We attach great importance, from the perspective of our national security, to the political and economic stabilization of the Middle East and North Africa region, which forms part of Türkiye’s security perimeter. In this context, we consider the establishment of a ‘Jerusalem Pact’ involving Türkiye and other Islamic countries to be necessary for our country’s security as well. At this stage, it has become an urgent and unavoidable necessity for all countries in the region to stand on their own feet, to demonstrate the ability to use their own resources and capabilities for the future of their peoples rather than according to policies dictated by imperialist powers; and to free the region from being a source and center of terrorism, which is a crime against humanity,” Bahçeli stated back then.