President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan performed Friday prayer at Kerem Aydınlar Mosque in Istanbul.
The President answered reporters’ questions following the prayer.
In answer to a question about the Turkish-made UAVs and UCAVs recently showcased at TEKNOFEST in Samsun, President Erdoğan noted that the country uninterruptedly continues its works in defense industry, and said: “During the presidency of the Bush the son, they didn’t give Türkiye the UAVs which they should have. When I told him, ‘You were going to give us UAVs, but you haven’t,’ during my first visit, he called Condoleezza Rica and asked her, ‘Why have you not given these? I want you to give these in 48 hours.’ They sent us the first batch. However, this didn’t last for long. Therefore, Mr. Özdemir, may he rest in peace, stepped in immediately together with his sons, starting to develop UAVs, which were followed by UCAVs. They have now produced Akıncı. They are currently working on warplanes as you have seen in the exhibition area in Samsun.”
Asked about the Greek S-300s locking on to Turkish F-16s and NATO changing its August 30 Victory Day messages upon Greece’s request, President Erdoğan said: “Greece’s annoyance or unfavorable approach to NATO doesn’t weaken the Türkiye-NATO relations. That is so because a NATO without Türkiye is unimaginable. What is more, Greece carries no weight within NATO. NATO is strong with Türkiye, and is not strong without Türkiye.”
https://www.tccb.gov.tr/en/news/542/139370/president-erdogan-performs-friday-prayer-in-istanbul-