President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said regarding the grain deal, "As Mr Putin stated, these vessels are headed for either developed or developing countries. Perhaps this is why Mr Putin does not ship Russian goods. During our upcoming meeting in Samarkand, we will kindly ask him to transport Russian goods through the corridor using these vessels."
On his return flight from his visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Croatia, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan answered journalists' questions and commented on current affairs.
President Erdoğan stated that they have concluded their Balkan tour, which began on Tuesday, and that they made exceptionally significant visits at a crucial period for regional developments, adding that the key agenda item was to resolve the political crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
President Erdoğan said, "In this context, we conferred with our counterparts and shared our suggestions and contributions. We agreed to continue and expand our dialogue and consultations, both bilaterally and through the Trilateral Consultation Mechanisms."
President Erdoğan stated that they exchanged ideas on regional and international developments as well as bilateral issues and added:
"I stressed our support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina in all of my meetings. I stated that our country will continue to do its part from this point forward. I believe we have made strides in overcoming existing difficulties. I attended business forums hosted in each of the three countries. In addition, eleven agreements in various fields were signed with three countries during my visits. Thus, we further strengthened the legal infrastructure of our relations."
"Türkiye and Bosnia and Herzegovina share strong historical, cultural, and human ties"
President Erdoğan stated that in Sarajevo, the first stop of his visit, they had fruitful meetings with the members of the Bosnia and Herzegovina Presidential Council, as well as the Collegium Members of the House of Representatives and the House of Peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina and continued, "We visited the Islamic Community of Bosnia and Herzegovina's new administrative building, whose construction was completed by Türkiye. There, we met the Grand Mufti of Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as muftis from all over the country. It gave me great pleasure to be the second President to hold such a meeting after the late Alija Izetbegović. As you know, Türkiye and Bosnia and Herzegovina share strong historical, cultural, and human ties beyond political, military, and economic relations. We will continue to work resolutely for the stability and prosperity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which holds a special place in the heart of the Turkish people.
Trade with Serbia
President Erdoğan remarked that relations with Serbia, the second stop of his visit, are constantly developing.
President Erdoğan stressed his pride in Turkish investments and entrepreneurs contributing to Serbia's economy and employment and said, "We have demonstrated our will to rapidly increase our current trade volume of $2 billion to $5 billion. We also held candid talks with the Sandžak region's most notable leaders. The Turkish Consulate General in Novi Pazar, which opened its doors last year, strengthens our ties with Serbia and the Sandžak region. There, we constructed the 20-kilometre Sandžak-Tutin road. Obviously, this has brought Novi Pazar great relief. They had one more request from us: a 200-300-meter asphalt road to connect this Tutin road to their mosque, which is located nearby. We have communicated the instructions to the relevant units. Our consular office in Niš, which we inaugurated last week, has also begun operations."
"I was pleased to observe that we and the Croatian side have a shared wish"
President Erdoğan emphasised that his visit to Croatia was also a huge success, stating:
"We had bilateral and inter-delegation meetings with President Milanović and Prime Minister Plenković. I was pleased to observe that we and the Croatian side have a shared wish to strengthen our ties. This year, we will easily surpass our goal of $1 billion in trade volume. In just eight months, we have already reached $760 million. We set our new goal at $2 billion, followed by $5 billion. In addition, we inaugurated the mosque and Islamic Cultural Centre in Sisak, which were constructed with TİKA's support. President Milanović and former President Kitarović attended the inauguration as well. Kitarović had communicated her wish to me regarding the construction of this cultural centre. We had stated that we would accommodate this wish, and we subsequently gave our instructions to TİKA.
On this occasion, we were united with our Muslim brothers and sisters in Croatia and shared the joy of finally being together. It was an honour to have the mosque and Islamic Cultural Centre bear my name on behalf of our country and people. Clearly, this reflects the love, respect, and trust towards Türkiye as well as for us. I believe that our visit to Croatia will yield significant results for our relations and the future of our region. I wish our Balkan tour and meetings in this context will lead to auspicious results."
"Greece's current stance towards Türkiye is irrational"
President Erdoğan was reminded that his reaction, "We may come suddenly one night," was on the agenda of the Western world and was asked, "Were you referring to a possible military intervention or another measure in your remarks?" President Erdoğan reiterated that the issues he stated and the message he wished to convey were crystal clear.
President Erdoğan stated, "Greece's current stance towards Türkiye is inexplicable," and added:
"On the one hand, there are violations they have committed in the Aegean, there are harassments against our aircraft, some of which are conducting NATO missions, and there are intrusive actions that even include the placement of radar locks by S-300 missiles. Have you heard anything about Greece's S-300 missiles from those who constantly discuss our S-400 issue? Like the S-400, the S-300s are Russian too. However, no one is disputing the first. They continue to arm the islands right before our eyes, despite the demilitarised status determined by the agreements. Concurrently, there is the issue of establishing a base. The United States, as you well know, is the lead in this matter. If we get the opportunity to meet with the President when we attend the United Nations General Assembly, we will bring up the United States' current actions and discuss them.
On the other hand, there are maximalist theses that they try to impose on us in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean in the context of maritime jurisdictions. This is something that cannot be tolerated. Instead of communicating directly with Türkiye, as if employing threat mechanisms, they continuously make claims against us in the United States and at the United Nations, the European Union, and even NATO, of which we are among the most powerful members. Obviously, this cannot be accepted. We open parenthesis and communicate in whatsoever language they are able to comprehend. I understand that they are also aware of it."
"The worth of our martyrs is extremely high, and they will pay for that"
In response to a question on a possible operation in Syria, President Erdoğan emphasised that there were numerous terrorist organisations in Syria and that they would not allow them to threaten the national security of Türkiye.
Pointing out that they were exerting the necessary effort in this regard in the field, President Erdoğan added:
"Our efforts against separatist terrorist organisations are, in fact, the guarantor of Syria's unity and territorial integrity, but the regime has not yet developed and is still developing no stance toward them. There is a way that these terrorist organisations understand and will understand. We need to act in this manner towards them. What does Türkiye's response entail, and how does Türkiye act when it responds, they know that too. Terrorist organisations know very well what we mean when we say, 'We will arrive suddenly one night" or "We can be there suddenly one night.' How do they know? They know from Cudi. How do they know? They know from Gabar. How do they know? They know from Tendürek. How do they know? They know from Bestler-Dereler. How do they know? They know from our cross-border operations. We had martyrs. However, the worth of our martyrs is extremely high, and they are paying and will pay for that."
Grain corridor deal
When asked, "President Putin of Russia said that all the grain of Ukraine went to the rich countries, not to poor ones. 'We can discuss that this route should be changed and countries should be limited.' You stated that you found him right at the meeting you held in Croatia, and you said that you would meet in Samarkand. Actually, there are two issues from Russia's side: its own fertiliser is still not leaving the ports, and grain is not reaching the poor countries. Putin allowed the 120-day period for the sake of Türkiye and granted this period. Do you believe he could have a request to terminate the deal? How would he approach you on this matter, and how would you address it at this summit?" President Erdoğan stated that he would hold a meeting with President Vladimir Putin of Russia in Samarkand, which he expects to be profound and comprehensive. Stating that they would mainly address the grain corridor issue in this meeting, President Erdoğan added:
"In fact, Putin was right when he said, 'it goes to the rich countries, not to poor ones.' I mean, it should not be done in this manner. Because the real issue should be reviving the poor countries through this grain corridor, ensuring that the poor countries receive their fair share, and overcoming this challenging time. However, it does not appear to be the case at this time. In other words, as stated by Mr Putin, these ships are headed for either developed or developing countries. Perhaps this is why Mr Putin does not ship Russian goods.
In our meeting in Samarkand, of course, we will request that Russian goods be delivered through the corridor by these ships. We will specifically ask him to begin. If the Russian grain begins to arrive, we will arrange it all in a certain system in the most effective manner including these poor African countries; we will send this grain, other goods and all of them there. We will discuss this matter openly with them. Because there are many countries in a difficult situation, particularly in Africa, and we need to embrace these countries and deliver these goods to them as soon as possible."
The energy crisis in Europe
Upon the question, "Europe is suffering a great deal from this crisis; will Europe's attitude towards the Russia-Ukraine crisis change? What is your prediction? When will Türkiye start using the natural gas that Türkiye finds in the Black Sea? Can we give a date? If new reserves are found, will Türkiye become a natural gas exporter?" stressing the measures of Europe regarding the energy crisis, President Erdoğan noted that countries, particularly Germany and France, were bragging about renewable energy before the natural gas shortage broke out.
Emphasising that they said, "We have nuclear energy," President Erdoğan pointed out that they said so because they were comfortable thanks to nuclear energy.
Stressing that the aforementioned countries said they had no problems regarding natural gas, President Erdoğan went on to say:
"In fact, at that period, I had meetings with Merkel and Macron. In those meetings, they said that they would close coal-powered thermal power plants, switch to renewable energy, and even decide to close nuclear power plants. For example, Germany had reduced it to three power plants. When Scholz came, I talked to Scholz as well about this issue; he said, 'I will not reverse the steps Merkel took. And I am determined to close these nuclear power plants too.' I asked him, 'Have you thought about it at length?' He said, 'Yes because renewable energy is now a joint decision of the European Union.' I realised that Macron had the same set of mind. And what happened next? Not a month passed, and Germany immediately decided to open the Ruhr basin, which is an important thermal power plant basin where Germany has a significant coal reserve.
Currently, Germany uses the Ruhr basin, namely the thermal power plant. It has reached that point. Of course, Russia did not take these decisions and steps gladly. Europe is not as comfortable and peaceful as one might think. This issue is evolving into a new dimension. There is such a situation. Thankfully, we do not face such a problem for now. Russia does not impose any sanctions on us. I had a meeting with him about the price in particular. If he applies a constructive approach to this subject with us, it would be excellent. Because our concern is to provide as much electricity or natural gas as possible to our citizens under more favourable conditions. Especially with the year 2023, I hope that if we extract our own natural gas, from the moment we extract it, we will deliver natural gas to our citizens' doorsteps much cheaper. This is our target. For now, this current reserve is not an export-oriented reserve. But I hope we will open a very favourable door for Türkiye."
Asked whether Europe's attitude towards the Russia-Ukraine war would change due to the crisis it would experience this winter, President Erdoğan said, "It seems difficult to speak with certainty before we get through this winter. Because this winter will not be easy for Europe; it will be a very tough, financially heavy winter."
It is stated that Europe is experiencing the worst energy crisis in its history, and that a shift to Türkiye for production in disrupted sectors is expected, and in response to the question "So far, has Europe made any investment or cooperation requests? Is there any planning for this?", President Erdoğan responded that companies from Europe and other parts of the world are knocking on Türkiye's door for investment.
President Erdoğan said, "Of course, I will not go into who these companies are due to their sensitivity, but as of now, there are companies that are in a position to invest a total of $20 billion in Türkiye. This figure will hopefully increase even more, it seems so."
Furthermore, President Erdoğan stated that there are foreign companies that are keeping their money in Türkiye in terms of finance, and continued his words as follows:
"Because there is no trust in other countries. But there is trust in Türkiye at this point. My friends and I are conducting many negotiations on this issue, and we are getting positive results as a result of these negotiations. We will not loosen the work, we will keep it tight, and we will hopefully evaluate and overcome this process in the best way possible. Because if you pay attention to our Central Bank, you will notice that the reserve has begun to rise. This, of course, allows us to act with confidence in terms of foreign exchange reserves. Many friendly countries are currently providing the necessary assistance in this regard. Our borrowing from them strengthens our Central Bank. Hopefully, by doing so, we will be able to solve the foreign currency problem. On the other hand, particularly in exports, you know there are such products that are based on imports, and you need foreign currency for these products, which we meet in this way. Our relevant ministries and institutions are currently carrying on their efforts."
President Erdoğan stated that there was a significant development in tourism, and said, "With the development in tourism, thanks be to Allah, we have returned to the pre-coronavirus period, and we have started to attract significant numbers of tourists from both Russia, Ukraine and the West. In this regard, of course, I would like to thank my Minister of Culture and Tourism. Because it is impossible to obtain success in this business unless you chase. Likewise, we are also receiving significant numbers of tourists from England. We are in such a period."
"One of the most significant operations of this period"
In response to the question, "Recent reports indicate that Turkish security forces have been capturing terrorists one by one. Last week, a PKK member trained in Greece was apprehended while planning an attack in İstanbul. Secondly, four PKK terrorists preparing for an attack in Diyarbakır, DAESH terrorists preparing for an attack in Gaziantep, and FETO members were caught. Are these arrests actually a trailer for a wholesale arrest? Is there any news of a new operation or the arrest of terrorist organisations or terrorists in this regard?" President Erdoğan shared the following information:
"The Turkish National Police, the Istanbul Police Department and the National Intelligence Organisation have carried out another significant operation against the DAESH terrorist organisation, and terrorist Bashar Khattab Ghazal al-Sumaidai, codenamed 'Abu Zeid/Master Zeid,' one of DAESH's most important senior ringleaders, has been captured in Türkiye." This terrorist was one of the most important senior ringleaders in the organisation after the death of DAESH terrorist organisation's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and his successor Abdul Nasser Qardash. International reports and the UN Security Report also indicated that he was one of the senior ringleaders of the DEASH terrorist organisation. According to his statement during the interrogation, he was supposedly a 'qadi' and the minister of education and justice. This terrorist's connections in Syria and İstanbul had been followed for a long time, and intelligence was obtained that he would enter Türkiye illegally. And this terrorist was caught by the successful operation of the National Police Intelligence, National Intelligence Organisation and Istanbul Police Department. Istanbul security units determined that the terrorist used a fake identity card and travelled in disguise. The captured DAESH terrorist was handed over to judicial authorities upon the instruction of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office after the interrogation by the National Intelligence Organisation and the Istanbul Police Department. One of the most significant operations of this period has been successfully executed."
"On our agenda with the opening of the Parliament"
When asked if action would be taken to protect youth from the insults and actions against moral principles that have recently been more prevalent on social media and when the social media regulation would be placed on the agenda of the Parliament, President Erdoğan responded, "The regulation regarding social media will be on our agenda with the opening of the Parliament."
"We are making preparations for them to return to their own land"
In response to the question, "Racism and hate speech, which is carried out through Islamophobia in Western countries, is sometimes used in our country to attain political gain through Syrian refugees and Arab tourists. What kind of measures are being taken against this racism and hate speech that aim to influence especially the young generation, what do you think about this issue?" President Erdoğan responded as follows:
“We know the culture of migration well. We know very well who a migrant (Muhajir) is. Our beloved Prophet, who was also a migrant, migrated to Medina with his companions. We understood and experienced the relationship between the Ansar (Helpers) and the migrant in the best way. You know how we say 'Talaʽ al-Badru ʽAlayna' (The full moon rose over us), all of this has a basis. We will take care of our brothers and sisters to the end. For example, why are we building these briquette houses? These people are fleeing a war. We have prepared and continue to prepare those briquette houses with our NGOs in order to provide an opportunity for these people who fled the war and came to our country to return to their lands, and they have begun to return slowly and are settling there."