President Erdoğan said: "I believe that the positive developments that are expected, particularly with regard to the F-16 issue and the United States and Canada's fulfilment of their commitments, will expedite our parliament's favourable position on this matter (Sweden's membership in NATO)."
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan weighed in on the recent developments while addressing journalists' questions on his return flight from Hungary.
President Erdoğan announced that the sixth meeting of the Türkiye-Hungary High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) was successfully held in Budapest, stating that they paid an official visit at the invitation of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of Hungary.
President Erdoğan reflected on his last visit to Hungary in August and recounted that he had met with Prime Minister Orbán in Budapest following his bilateral meeting with President Katalin Novák upon arrival.
President Erdoğan said that following their bilateral talks, they co-chaired the sixth council meeting, which was attended by the relevant ministers and in which a wide range of issues pertaining to the relations between Türkiye and Hungary were thoroughly discussed.
President Erdoğan further elaborated that the five council meetings that have taken place over the past decade have significantly contributed to the enhancement of bilateral relations, adding:
"The contractual basis of our relations has been solidified through the signing of approximately 50 agreements covering numerous fields. We have strengthened our cooperation by signing 17 new agreements today. I gifted Mr. Orbán a Togg, that is both domestic and national and a source of pride for our country. He graciously gifted us a magnificent horse in return. We intend for the value of our bilateral trade to increase from the projected four billion dollars by the end of the year to six billion dollars. We will move one step closer to this target through the Economic and Trade Partnership Committee Meeting, the debut of which will be held in Türkiye."
President Erdoğan noted that their agenda covered not only bilateral relations but also the relations between Türkiye and the European Union, Ukraine, and the ongoing developments in the occupied Palestinian territories, with particular emphasis on Gaza, and said:
"Hungary will assume the Presidency of the Council of the EU during the second half of the following year. A reaffirmation of support for our membership in the European Union by our strategic partner Hungary was crucial in this regard. Additionally, we derive great benefit from the cooperation we have established with Hungary within the Organisation of Turkic States. I have consistently brought the humanitarian crisis in Gaza to the fore of every meeting I have attended since October 7. We discussed what could be done to ensure a permanent ceasefire and the flow of unrestricted humanitarian aid. By signing a joint political declaration with Mr Orbán, we formally declared the upgrading of our strategic partnership to the level of an enhanced strategic partnership. The decisions and agreements we have recently signed are indicative of the current stage of our relations and our strategic visions."
President Erdoğan stated that during his visit, he, along with Prime Minister Orbán and President Novák, also inaugurated the Türkiye-Hungary Culture Year and added, "Culture Year events will be held throughout 2024 to crown the longstanding friendship ties between our countries and peoples. In addition, 2025 will be designated as the Türkiye-Hungary Science and Innovation Year. Our joint leaps in science and technology will pave the way for new opportunities for our countries. I hope that the decisions we have made and the meetings we have had will bring auspicious outcomes."
"These are all interconnected"
Upon the question, citing the fact that Türkiye and Hungary are two of the countries that did not support Sweden's bid to join NATO, "At the meeting you had with Mr Viktor Orbán, did you assess this matter? As a result of your referral to the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, Sweden's accession protocol to NATO membership will ultimately be brought before the parliament for approval. What will the People's Alliance's position be?" President Erdoğan responded:
As you are aware, we were the ones who forwarded Sweden's NATO membership and accession protocol to the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye. The issue of Sweden was also discussed during our meeting with President Joe Biden of the United States. We assessed the F-16 issue between the US and Türkiye in light of this context. During the meeting, remarks were made such as 'You get this through the parliament, and I will do the same with the Congress,' and 'Allow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye Hakan Fidan to work on this process in tandem. If we can work on this simultaneously, we will be able to pass it through the parliament much more easily.' Another complicating issue in the parliamentary process is the negative stance of Canada and some allies on defence procurement.. These are all interconnected. I believe that the positive developments that are expected, particularly with regard to the F-16 issue and the United States and Canada's fulfilment of their commitments, will expedite our parliament's favourable position on this matter. On the other hand, Sweden made commitments to us in Vilnius. We expect these to be fulfilled, and we are closely following the developments."
"It serves almost as a bridge"
"The Organisation of Turkic States (OTS) was established in 2009 with your great efforts. Thanks to your special efforts, Hungary has also become a part of the OTS as an observer country. Today, in the current situation, we see that they are taking decisions in the same direction as Türkiye on many subjects. Does this relationship between the OTS and Hungary have an impact on their policies?" In response to the question, President Erdoğan said that relations between Hungary and the OTS are extremely cordial.
Stating that Hungary serves almost as a bridge between the OTS and the European Union, President Erdoğan continued:
"Hungary has a position that contributes to strengthening relations between the OTS and the European Union, and this is very valuable. Of course, this is also reflected in Türkiye-Hungary relations. Relations with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán of Hungary have always developed in a positive direction. Orbán's stance on Türkiye's rights in the European Union has always been positive. In the second half of 2024, they will assume the Term Presidency of the European Union, and that may give rise to entirely new developments. We discussed this issue with him today. We have met 21 times so far. Mr Orbán is a leader with whom we maintain positive relations. I hope that the meetings and agreements of our ministers with their counterparts will make our work much easier in the following process. There are good developments in our bilateral relations with Hungary; we are hopeful in that respect. I am sure that this will continue in the future as well."
"This decision says something to the whole world"
In response to the question, "Last week, for the first time since October 7, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly voted in favour of the call for an immediate ceasefire. Hungary abstained this time, having voted ‘against’ in the previous vote. Did you have any suggestion to the Prime Minister of Hungary on this issue?" President Erdoğan said:
"Unfortunately, the UN General Assembly vote has no direct sanctioning power due to the global system's flaws, but the 153 votes in favour are extremely valuable. This decision says something to the whole world. As a result of voting, the overwhelming majority says, 'We are against Israel's massacres, and we stand with Palestine. These attacks must stop immediately.' The permanent members of the Security Council are also in favour. In fact, of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, only the United States sided with Israel and voted against it. Even that should tell the world something. It is thought-provoking that only ten countries, two of them the US and Israel, have said no to the ceasefire and that a permanent ceasefire has still not been achieved.
That is why we say on every possible platform, 'The world is bigger than five' and 'A fairer world is possible.' One country can lock the global system. Since Hungary abstained, it means that it will probably move towards supporting the ceasefire. In the UN General Assembly vote, the number of countries supporting the ceasefire increased from 121 to 153. Now, with these 153 votes in favour, the positive approach from our point of view will increase even more, and the Israeli-Palestinian process will develop very differently. I also find it important, for example, that the US Congress rejected the resolution on aid to Israel."
"We need to mobilise the Islamic world for this"
"Unfortunately, Israel's massacre of children and the elderly in the region, which it started under the pretext of ending Hamas' influence in Gaza, continues. Everyone is asking the question, 'What will happen afterwards?' Will a new administration be founded there, will it be annexed, or will there be a new formation under the governance of Mahmoud Abbas, under the leadership of Fatah? Is it possible to reach a solution without Hamas? Was there any contact between Hamas and Fatah during this process? After the ceasefire, to what extent has the region approached a two-state solution? What would you like to say about Türkiye's role in this regard?" President Erdoğan answered these questions and went on to say:
"I have said many times that Hamas is not a terrorist organisation, it is a political party. I would like to reiterate. As a political party, they are fighting for the rights they will gain. I brought together Fatah and Hamas, that is, Ismail Haniyeh and Mahmoud Abbas, in my office. That meeting was already covered in the media. There is no such thing as Fatah and Hamas not meeting. They are meeting, and it is possible that they will take these talks a step further. I believe that there are many things that we, as Türkiye, have done and can do on this issue. It is essential for Fatah and Hamas to live in peace.
Currently, when Hamas is mentioned, we talk about Palestine. This means that they are like flesh and bone—inseparable. Right now, we need to strive to preserve this unity and hopefully bring this matter to a conclusion together with this unity. I believe that we should get a result like this. Right now, our only concern is how many of the wounded and sick from Gaza can we take into our country and have them treated in our country... After that, if these attacks end, our agenda will be the construction and revival of Gaza. We need to mobilise the Islamic world for this. We evaluate with the Gulf countries and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation that we are ready to take part in this issue and to do our best in construction and revival.
Upon the questions, recalling the speech he gave after the ceasefire vote at the UN General Assembly, "How did your statement 'A fairer world is possible, but not with the US' resonate with other world leaders you met with? Do you find other world leaders brave enough to confront the US? A few days after this statement, you had a phone conversation with President Biden of the US. Did he bring this up during your conversation? Which issues did you discuss with him?" President Erdoğan responded as follows:
"It is essential to take fair steps for a fairer world. I believe that the United States has a historical responsibility in this process and must fulfil it. That responsibility is to persuade Israel to abandon this brutality, and stop this massacre in Gaza. However, the US has encouraged Israel so far, let alone stopped them. Israel, encouraged and empowered by the US, does not recognise international law or human rights. During the phone call with Biden, I reminded the US of its historical responsibility. I called on them to take the stance that the whole world is waiting for. How can the world shout louder about the need to stop Israel? For weeks, humanity has been saying ‘enough’ both at the UN and in the squares of countries.
This outcry resonated in front of the White House and even in the US Congress. The US must now stop turning a deaf ear to these pleas. Israel is not only attacking the Palestinians and Gaza, but also humanity. History will judge and condemn those who remain silent. Unfortunately, justice will not be achieved solely through calm in Gaza. There are many different problems in the world. For instance, the Grain Corridor mechanism was a positive step towards a fairer world. We need to make the Grain Corridor operational again. We need to ensure that African countries in need get their share of this. We had formed trilateral cooperation between Russia, Qatar and Türkiye. Qatar would financially support the grain coming through this corridor; we would step in and process it into flour through our facilities and then transfer it to African countries. We are following this plan. We will soon meet with President Vladimir Putin of Russia, and say, 'Let us do everything we can to keep the Grain Corridor operational.' Insallah, we will continue on our way with positive answers."
"We will not account for the silence of others"
When asked how he evaluated the inaction of certain Islamic nations, President Erdoğan, who has been advocating for the innocents in Gaza since the beginning of the Israel-Palestine conflict, responded as follows: "Everyone is responsible for themselves. We will not account for the silence of others. We say, 'We will continue to move forward without stopping,' and we will warn and work diligently. This is our duty."
President Erdoğan continued as follows after declaring that they are on the side of the Palestinians and that they must proclaim the Palestinians righteousness:
"It should be clear to everyone that the rightful ones are the Palestinians who, over the years, have faced the occupation of their country, witnessed the seizure of their homes by terrorists, and have borne the cost for years to safeguard their land. The world has recognised this righteousness many times through those like us who have tried to make their outcry heard. The most vehement condemnations of Israeli barbarism were expressed in the most recent United Nations vote. It is time to inform those who refuse to hear the outcry of Palestine and to take the necessary measures to punish the perpetrators. This is the reason why we were present at the Riyadh Summit. If we attended Doha, it was for that reason. If meetings continue to be held there in the future, my colleagues and I will be present for the same reason. For instance, our Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan is currently participating in the meetings of the contact group of seven that were formed subsequent to the Riyadh Summit. Why is this group of seven going to various countries? In order to keep track of things. We will continue in the same way. On multiple occasions during private meetings, we have conveyed to a number of Islamic nations, 'We expect significantly different actions from you; we expect different efforts; and you must take these actions.' My friends and I are following up on this."
"Leaving his seat will not save him"
Reminding him of the phrase "Netanyahu, you are losing ground" that he used for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel in November, a journalist asked President Erdoğan the following question: "More than a month has passed. Observing the current state of affairs reveals that your prediction was accurate. Even statements from the United States began to criticise Netanyahu. Do you foresee any changes in the Israeli cabinet in the future?" President Erdoğan responded as follows:
"Everyone will see that Netanyahu has lost ground—even those who ignored us when we said he would soon be gone and those who had difficulty articulating our rightness. But giving up his seat will not save him. We will pursue him on legal grounds to hold him accountable for the suffering of the oppressed. Hopefully, this massacre will cease following the Israeli cabinet change. Otherwise, the same process that toppled Netanyahu will also make them disappear from history. Everyone involved in this genocide, not just Netanyahu, will be held accountable for the war crimes they have committed in the eyes of the law. In Israel, strong voices against the Netanyahu administration are starting to rise. For example, the incident of hostages being killed by Israel has increased the level of public outrage. The ultimate avenger is Allah."
"The EU needs to take Türkiye's position into account from now on"
Recalling that the EU has initiated accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova and granted candidate status to Georgia, a journalist asked President Erdoğan about his assessment of these decisions. President Erdoğan responded as follows:
"Granting them candidate status does not mean that they will become members of the EU. A process will be started with them, and they will be stalled. None of these countries have as much value as Türkiye. The EU needs to take Türkiye's position into account from now on. It is wrong for Türkiye, which is more ready to join the EU than many member countries, to be kept waiting at the door for years due to political obstacles. While Türkiye’s strategic and economic potential requires it to have already achieved full membership in the EU, we have been stalled for years under a variety of pretexts. It has once again been revealed how important and effective a country Türkiye is in the processes we have experienced in recent years. The EU must now abandon this mistake. Perhaps, during Hungary's term presidency, this issue may be discussed in a very different way and a new step may be taken accordingly."