A video message from President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was broadcast during the official opening ceremony of Türkiye’s Consulate General in Novi Pazar.
President Erdoğan stated in his message that he had visited Sandzak in 2017 and was delighted to address the guests once again on the occasion of the official opening of the Consulate General in Novi Pazar four years after that visit.
President Erdoğan expressed his gratitude to President Aleksandar Vučić of Serbia for his support during the opening of the Consulate General and said, “The opening of our Consulate General in Novi Pazar will contribute to the further development of Turkish-Serbian relations. Our Consulate General will be at the service not only of our citizens but also of you, our brothers and sisters from Sandzak. We regard our brothers and sisters from Sandzak as a bridge of friendship between Türkiye and Serbia.”
President Erdoğan said, “We observe the positive impacts of our strong bond on our bilateral relations together,” and emphasised that the activities to be carried out by the Consulate General would ensure that this bond was further strengthened.
Stating that cooperation with Serbia was developing day by day on a “win-win” basis, President Erdoğan noted that Turkish businesspeople had made investments that created employment and brought value to the country in every region of Serbia.
Pointing out that the efforts to enhance Sandzak’s infrastructure continued at full steam, President Erdoğan highlighted that the Novi Pazar-Tutin road would become operational the following year and other transportation projects to be realised through the Belgrade-Sarajevo highway would ensure the integration of Sandzak with the rest of the region.
President Erdoğan indicated that they would continue to encourage investments in Serbia and the Sandzak region and that the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) also carried out development projects while thanking Vučić for the support he provided on all those matters.
President Erdoğan remarked, “My brothers and sisters from Sandzak, the fraternal ties between us were reaffirmed by your solidarity on the night of the heinous coup attempt of July 15. Mr Vučić was one of the first leaders to support us. We will never forget my dear friend Vučić’s valiant stand at such a vital time,” and emphasised that by working jointly, they would uproot the FETO betrayal gang from the Balkans.
President Erdoğan continued as follows:
“We regard Serbs, Croats, Bosnians, Albanians, and all other peoples in the Balkans as our friends with whom we have coexisted for centuries and with whom we will continue to collaborate in all fields in the future.
We believe that as long as the Balkan peoples act in the spirit of friendship, solidarity and cooperation, a prosperous future awaits them.
With these thoughts in mind, I wish our Consulate General to be auspicious and salute you all with respect and compassion.”
The ceremony was also attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, as well as Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikola Selaković of Serbia, Ambassador of Türkiye to Belgrade Hami Aksoy and Türkiye’s Consulate General to Novi Pazar Başar Başol.
