President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan answered reporters' questions and commented on the recent developments on his return flight from a visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro.
President Erdoğan stated that he had finalised the official talks held as a part of his visits to Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro and that he had convened with the members of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Presidential Council in Sarajevo, which was the first stop of his visit, adding that the talks held in Bosnia and Herzegovina were centred on brainstorming possible joint steps they could take to enhance their partnership in all areas further, encompassing bilateral, regional, and global issues.
Noting that they were able to seize an opportunity to evaluate the progress made on existing projects in various areas, particularly the Sarajevo-Belgrade motorway, President Erdoğan added, "We exchanged ideas on new areas of cooperation that we can adopt for the benefit of our countries and to support the development efforts of Bosnia and Herzegovina. By August 1, 2021, the updated Free Trade Agreement will enter into force, allowing us to expand both our trade and our investments in Bosnia and Herzegovina."
"Our close interest in the Balkans will continue in the future"
President Erdoğan indicated that during his visit to Montenegro, they held sincere and fruitful meetings with both President Milo Đukanović and Prime Minister Zdravko Krivokapic, as well as bilateral and inter-committee meetings with Parliament Speaker Aleksa Becic.
President Erdoğan made the following evaluations regarding his visit to Montenegro:
"We evaluated the joint steps we could take for the further growth of our ever-developing relations with our friend and ally Montenegro. During my visit to Montenegro, where we maintain friendly relations in every sense, I was pleased to see that our Montenegrin friends shared the same understanding. On the other hand, we were pleased to observe that there was a strong will on the Montenegrin side, particularly to increase Turkish investments in the country."
"Our visits to Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro, the projects we carried out here, constitute the last link of our policy to strengthen our comprehensive and multifaceted relations with the Balkan region. This is the third time we have met with the Presidential Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I also attach great importance to these close contacts, especially in terms of continuity and follow-up. Our close interest in the Balkans will continue in the future. The peace and stability of Bosnia and Herzegovina are of vital importance for the peace and stability of the entire Balkans. This is why we follow developments here closely and assist Bosnia and Herzegovina in political, economic, cultural, military, regional and other matters. We want Bosnia and Herzegovina to solve its internal political problems within the framework of the country's territorial integrity and political unity.
We will maintain our close contacts with Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian and all Bosnia-Herzegovinian counterparts. We plan to increase our trade volume with Bosnia and Herzegovina to 1 billion Euros. We are taking additional steps for this. At this point, I attach great importance to the completion of the Sarajevo-Belgrade highway. This highway will be the project for the road to peace in the Balkans and will contribute to the entire region's development, peace and stability. The bridge over the Sava River will also be completed by the end of 2022. As the leaders, we had laid the foundation. We consider these as projects that will ensure the economic development of Bosnia and Herzegovina."
"I am greatly pleased with my first official visit to Montenegro. We had met with Montenegrin President Đukanović in Antalya. We also discussed our bilateral relations, regional issues, and the steps we can take together during this visit. We supported Montenegro's NATO membership, and we can see the positive results of this. We also talked about our goal of 250 million Euros in trade with Montenegro."
After his comments, President Erdoğan also answered questions from members of the press.
Upon the question of one of the press members, "How can Türkiye support the new government in ensuring security and stability in Afghanistan? In this context, considering that Afghanistan's security is vital not only for the Afghan people but also for its neighbouring countries, can a process including Afghanistan's neighbours Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan be run under the leadership of Türkiye?" President Erdoğan emphasized that a government has not yet been established in Afghanistan, and it was not clear what advantages or disadvantages the situation would present.
President Erdoğan stated as follows:
"The Taliban's statements are moderate, but do the statements of 20 years ago coincide with the current ones? When we consider this, of course, there are doubts in this matter. Here, we have to monitor the process with sensitivity for the moment. For one thing, we will see what the Taliban's position is on statehood or state management.
We have provided full support to Afghanistan, both in terms of infrastructure and superstructure, over the last 20 years. However, the Taliban caused some severe damage in northern Afghanistan. For example, Dostum, a Turk himself, had to leave Afghanistan because he was under threat. These are thought-provoking matters. We don't know what will happen tomorrow. Countries neighbouring Afghanistan, starting with Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan here, and Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan on the other side, may want to be partners in the positive steps that the Taliban may take.
The Republic of Türkiye has a certain background and considerable experience. We would like to help with this experience and foundation. But in order to help, the doors have to be opened first. That is why our intelligence is currently holding talks with the Taliban interlocutors. Apart from this, meetings also take place in some countries in the south. Above all, now Doctor Abdullah Abdullah and Hamid Karzai are meeting there. The messages they give are also essential to us. As Türkiye, our concern is this; Afghanistan must recover quickly. The Afghan people can no longer bear such a burden. We are ready to give all kinds of support to Afghanistan's unity and solidarity, as long as we see the same approach from Afghanistan's side in this sense."
"I cannot say it's impossible to make a deal like the one made with Libya"
Upon the question from one of the press members, "You said yesterday that Türkiye had withdrawn all its civilian and military elements from Afghanistan, except for the technical delegation. Is there a possibility of returning here with a Libya-like agreement? Is it early to talk about that? There are offers for us regarding the management of Kabul Airport. You said, 'We have not made a decision on this matter yet.' Under what conditions would we accept this? If an agreement is reached, will there be a Somali-like operating scenario? What role can Türkiye play in the Afghanistan crisis?" President Erdoğan said, "I cannot say that it is impossible to make an agreement like the one made with Libya. We could make the same sort of deal as long as we have an addressee in the same sense. If we can sit down with an addressee of the kind, why shouldn't we make such an agreement? Our concern is to solve problems."
"The safety of our embassy personnel is our priority"
When asked about the operation of the embassy, stating that the embassy had been conducting its work temporarily at Kabul Airport for two weeks, President Erdoğan said, "They returned to our embassy building in the city centre the previous day and are continuing their activities from there. Our current plan is to maintain our diplomatic presence in this way. We constantly update our plans according to the developments regarding the situation in terms of security. We have the necessary alternative plans ready against all possibilities. The safety of our personnel is our priority."
When asked by a member of the press for his suggestion for Muslim women to share their experiences with Afghan women, President Erdoğan said: "Regarding Afghan women, we see them as we see the women in our country and can take steps for Afghan women to live with the same rights."
Expressing that Afghanistan's conditions cannot be evaluated in the same manner as in Türkiye, President Erdoğan noted as follows:
"Surely, the Taliban's view of women will not be the same as it was 20 years ago, in my opinion. They will certainly see a change in this matter as well. And as I said before, in all these talks and developments, if there is any support they want from us, and we will provide all kinds of support, which is a reformist approach. If Afghanistan makes such a request in a reformist approach, we will also fulfil this request."
When asked about his opinions on the statements of former US President Donald Trump regarding the Khorasan branch of DAESH, where he said, "I defeated 100 per cent of DAESH. We defeated it in Syria and Iraq. Now there is a new DAESH." President Erdoğan said, "I honestly do not find this statement correct at all. There is absolutely no such thing."
Expressing that he had private bilateral meetings with Trump, President Erdoğan said:
"For once, the US has not defeated DAESH. It has never given such a serious and determined fight against DAESH. There is only one country in the world fighting against DAESH decisively, and that is Türkiye. We have fought and are still fighting against them in our country. We have fought and are fighting against them in Iraq. We have fought and are fighting against them in Syria. Where in the world have they fought against DAESH? If they had defeated them, they would have defeated the ones in Iraq. They could not even handle it in Iraq. This struggle is still going on right now. I hope that the Biden administration will continue such an approach from where the US left off, dealing with the Khorasan branch of DAESH. Because we now face something called DAESH-Khorasan. Let's continue this fight with them. We would take the steps with them."
"It is sufficient for us to take such a step if they make the decision among themselves"
Upon the question, "Despite the tension that started in Bosnia and Herzegovina with the decision of the former UN High Representative Valentin Inzko criminalizing the denial of the Srebrenica Genocide, the three members of the Presidential Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina met on the occasion of your visit. Considering the statements of both Serbian leader Milorad Dodik and Croatian leader Željko Komšić that Türkiye was the guarantor of peace and tranquillity in the region, what role will our country assume in Bosnia from now on?" President Erdoğan made the following assessment:
"In Bosnia, if this trio establishes a unity among themselves and say, 'We want to assign such a task to Türkiye, no one should interfere with our business, only Türkiye should act as a mediator here on our behalf,' then we would take part in this work. But the members of the Presidential Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina have to make this decision."
"There is a need for new, constructive approaches in our region"
When asked about the statement of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan that they received some positive messages from the Turkish public, stating, "We will evaluate these messages," President Erdoğan wished that the new government that was established in Armenia would be auspicious for the region.
President Erdoğan stated, "There is a need for new, constructive approaches in our region. Even though there are differences of opinion and expectation, it will be a responsible course of action to make a sincere effort to develop good neighbourly relations based on trust, including respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty."
Pointing out that recent history should not be a source of hostility and that constructive steps should be taken for sustainable peace and coexistence, President Erdoğan said, "Forward-looking, realistic approaches should prevail instead of unilateral accusations. We can gradually normalize our relations with an Armenian government that has declared its readiness to move in this direction. Now we have to make peace and stability permanent and provide the conditions for economic development and regional cooperation."
Expressing that, Azerbaijan also offered to start negotiations with Armenia for a comprehensive peace agreement with a similar understanding, President Erdoğan said:
"As agreed in the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, new opportunities will arise that will transform the southern Caucasus by connecting the entire region. We are ready to work with all parties who want to make good use of this historic opportunity. Our proposal for a platform with 5 or 6 countries still stands. This platform includes Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran and Armenia. We even said that we should include Georgia in it. If this platform were to be accepted in this way, I think the region would be much more relieved because railways and highways need to be built in the region. We thought that by taking such a step, we would overcome the problems in the region. When we discussed these with Mr Putin, we agreed. Likewise, we agreed with Ilham Aliyev. Meanwhile, there was a change of President in Iran. We can talk about this with the new President of Iran, Mr Raisi. Then we shall take steps to establish this platform."
"We plan to take many steps with Russia, be it the matter of S-400 or the defence industry"
Upon the question, "The Russian government issued a statement stating that progress has been made in purchasing the second package of S-400 missiles. Is there purchase of a second package?" President Erdoğan said, "Regarding Russia, we do not have any hesitation about matters such as the purchase of the second package, and so on. We plan to take many steps with Russia, be it the S-400 matter or the defence industry. Let me even tell you about another alternative. We used Ilyushin planes from them in these fires. We discussed this issue in our last phone call. We will discuss all of these again on my visit to Russia."
In response to the question of whether there is a process in place to improve relations with Israel, President Erdoğan said, "We have already reviewed the situation regarding Israel by having talks with the President. Hopefully, there will be no problem regarding the prime minister and other ministers. If Mr President is there for the UN General Assembly, maybe we can have talks with him there as well."
