Filenews 20 June 2022
Turkey sees a role in playing a reason to intervene in various regions of the world, from the Balkans and the Black Sea to the Middle East and Africa. The website of the state-run Anadolu Agency (PIO source) recently hosted an excerpt of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Çavuşoğlu's speech at the Turkish Business and Humanitarian Foreign Policy Conference at the Recep Tayyip Erdogan Conference Center in Bingyol, eastern Turkey. In this speech, Mevlut Çavuşoğlu recorded all Turkish aspirations.
The Turkish Foreign Minister in the context of his speech said among other things: "60% of global crises and conflicts occur in our geographical region and concern us directly. Despite all the difficulties, thanks to what these difficulties taught us, Turkey has become a country with increased regional power." Mevlut Çavuşoğlu noted that foreign policy is national and transcends domestic politics and works for the interests of the nation and the state.
The Turkish foreign minister said that Turkey is among the three main continents. Specifically, he said: "We are a country of the Black Sea, the Balkans, the Middle East and the Mediterranean. We are in the centre of a region that extends from one side to the Caucasus and on the other to Africa. That's why the fact that we are in the centre of such an area requires us to be strong."
He also noted that Turkey has become an international player and that the country's foreign policy is multifaceted and its issues of interest are many and important. Çavusoglu stressed that the country must assess issues properly and define its foreign policy and added that large countries have a heavy weight and that a large country has great demands and great responsibilities.
"That's why the burden of our responsibility is great. We have to cope. Today Turkey is obliged to say that it is also present in areas such as the Balkans, the Caucasus, the Middle East, the Black Sea and Africa. We cannot afford to ignore these areas, we have to be present. And with god's help we will become even more powerful," he argued.
Explaining that the work of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has multiplied in recent years, Çavusoglu said that Turkey approaches all countries by keeping equal distances and without discrimination and argued that the country is working to resolve the issues in a fair way.
He went on to say: "Of course in our visits to the agenda are on the one hand the consequences of the war in Ukraine and on the other hand the food crisis and at the same time the tension in the Balkans as a collateral consequence of the war. In other words, Azerbaijan has regained its territory, but the open issues in the Caucasus have not ended. We are working hard to bring stability and peace to the region. Thank God, Turkey has become a point of gravity on the world map. Some very important decisions are now taking shape here."
The Turkish foreign minister also noted that diplomacy is no longer the job of a particular group of politicians and diplomats and added that foreign policy actors have increased and that they work harmoniously with ministries, MPs, non-governmental organizations, academics and municipalities.
Çavusoglu continued his speech by saying that foreign policy cannot be different from the feelings, expectations and sensitivities of the nation and added: "Global balances are changing rapidly. There are conflicts and conflicts in our region. These developments test the will and endurance of each country. The will of a country is commensurate with its endurance. The pandemic is over and the war in Ukraine began. There is an energy crisis as well as a food crisis. The global economic burden has begun to be felt. Crises do not only affect the geographical area where they occur. The consequences of the Ukrainian crisis, for example, are causing hunger in Africa, a migration crisis in Europe and a crisis in the productive sector in Latin America."
Çavusoglu concluded his speech by claiming that Turkey is well aware of its power and obligations and claimed: "In Syria, Iraq, Libya, the Eastern Mediterranean, the Caucasus, the Balkans, the Middle East, we help the weak and stand against those who are in the wrong. It is no coincidence that we are present both in our neighbourhood and in distant geographical areas. We defend the rights of our nation and the weak, we seek the law, we defend the interests of our country."
AN IMPORTANT PARTNER FOR SPAIN
The news website T24 (pio source) in a report reports that the Spanish ambassador to Ankara, Francisco Javier Herghueta Garnica, said that Turkey is becoming an increasingly important partner for Spain with each passing day.
During his inaugural address to the Spanish-Turkish Cooperation Summit, which began yesterday in Ankara on the subject of discussing economic and trade relations between Spain and Turkey, the Ambassador of Spain in Ankara said, among other things, that this summit is a result of the increasing bilateral relations between the two countries.
"We see this in all industries. An increase of 1.3 million (in trade) was achieved. Turkey is becoming a more important partner for us with each passing day. We need to think in the short term about investment. We have come here and we see Turkey as a long-term partner. Therefore, it is very important to get to know Turkey directly and to know the experiences of Spanish companies in Turkey," he said.
For his part, Zeynel Abidine Erdem, president of the Turkey-Spain Business Council of the External Economic Relations Council, said Turkey had received support from Spain in its EU accession efforts.
