Erdoğan comments on the fake diploma agenda through İmamoğlu: '30 years later in Istanbul...'

The Cabinet, chaired by Erdoğan, has concluded its meeting at Beştepe. President Erdoğan made statements after the meeting. Speaking about the agreement reached between Azerbaijan and Armenia with American mediation, Erdoğan said, "A new era had already begun in our region with the liberation of Karabakh after 30 years of occupation. The agreement reached in Washington on August 8 was a historic step on the path to establishing lasting peace in the South Caucasus."

Here are the highlights from President Erdoğan's speech:

"I convey my best wishes to all our citizens affected by the earthquake that occurred in Balıkesir last night; I pray for God's mercy upon our citizen who passed away and wish a speedy recovery to those lying in the hospital.

We directed our Minister of Interior and Minister of Health to the district. We put all members of our Cabinet on alert; we followed it moment by moment. Search and rescue operations have been completed, and damage assessment studies are ongoing. Our minister friends shared information regarding their own fields in a transparent manner. With every earthquake and tremor, we are reminded of the importance of earthquake preparedness. Our government's efforts regarding the renewal of the building stock, especially urban transformation, are known. However, this is not a burden that the central administration can handle alone.

It is essential that we carry out this struggle with a spirit of mobilization by joining hands with the government, the opposition, local administrations, and city residents; a consensus must be formed, and no one should refrain from taking responsibility. We are open to cooperation to ensure this.

"IT WAS A PROMISING DEVELOPMENT"

We will continue to protect the sacred trusts for which our martyrs entrusted their lives. By reaching the goal of a Turkey without terrorism, we will show that the sacrifices of our martyrs and veterans will not be in vain. A meaningful step was taken on the path to this goal last week. The 'National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission', established with the participation of opposition parties, was extremely valuable in terms of our Parliament, the place where national will is manifested, taking ownership of the process. We are pleased that this ownership has been realized. The fact that the commission's decisions were taken unanimously was another promising development. We hope that this constructive approach will be maintained.

Even if our lifestyles, political views, and ideas are different, we are the original owners of Turkey; neither our different thoughts nor daily debates should stand in the way of this. We value the support, contribution, and guiding criticism of everyone in such an issue that concerns the peace and future of 86 million people. A window of opportunity has opened before Turkey. The sin of wasting this is heavy; our commission will do what is necessary in line with the expectations of our nation. We are also providing all kinds of support to the commission's work. On Friday, the Minister of National Defense and the Minister of Interior, along with the head of the MİT, made comprehensive presentations to the commission and informed the members. Let us all stop the bloodshed together, let us end the pain and tears.

"AS PRESIDENT, WE HAVE COMPLETED OUR 11TH YEAR WITH OUR HEADS HELD HIGH"

Displaying a national stance on national issues is the fundamental duty of the political institution. This state is the state of every individual of the 86 million, with its Turks, Kurds, and Arabs. We are all the original owners of the Republic of Turkey.

Dear members of the press, yesterday, as President, I thank God that we completed our 11th year on the path of serving our nation with our heads held high. On this occasion, I would like to thank my dear nation, who has not spared their prayers, support, and loyalty from us since the moment we first stepped onto the political stage. I also express my gratitude to every brother and sister who helped us equip every square meter of Turkey with works. We are concerned with appearing before both our people and the Creator with the peace of mind of having done our duty.

We work day and night, adopting the motto that 'he whose two days are equal is in loss.' The prayer of 'May God be pleased with him,' which comes from the heart of a citizen who has benefited from our services, no matter where they live in our country, is the greatest honor and the greatest happiness for us. We are in a multi-layered struggle both at home and abroad to be worthy of our nation's trust and prayers.

"WE ARE REAPING THE FRUITS"

Dear friends, with this understanding, we have been running without stopping or resting since our last cabinet meeting. On July 29, we hosted the President of Kazakhstan, Mr. Tokayev, and his delegation in Ankara on the occasion of the 5th meeting of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council. On the occasion of the visit, we signed a total of 20 agreements in various fields.

We are determined to reach our trade target of 15 billion dollars. I convey my greetings once again to my dear brother Tokayev from here. I reiterate my pleasure in hosting him. We are reaping the fruits of our Africa outreach and Turkey-Africa partnership policies, which we have meticulously implemented for 20 years, in various fields. For example, while we had 12 embassies on the continent in 2002, this number has risen to 44 today.

The number of African embassies in Ankara has reached 38. Our trade volume, which was 4.3 billion dollars in 2002, has increased 9-fold to 36.6 billion dollars as of the end of 2024. Turkish contractors have undertaken 2031 projects in Africa with a total value of 97 billion dollars. Our country's investments in Africa have reached 10 billion dollars from 67 million dollars. As a country with no shame of colonialism in its past, we have shown the whole world that a cooperation model based on a win-win understanding is possible. We achieved all this despite the colonized minds among us who look at the continent through the eyes of the white man. Now we are taking this to a higher level with mutual visits. The visit of the President of Gabon, Mr. Nigama, on July 31, and the visit of the Prime Minister of Senegal, Mr. Ousmane Sonko, on August 7, showed that our African brothers also share the same will.

Turkey is the country that gives the clearest reaction to the terrorist state of Israel. Our nation, especially our NGOs, foundations, and associations, did not leave the people of Gaza alone. We witnessed this at the Turkey Youth Foundation summer schools final program, which 50 thousand of our young friends also attended.

"IT WAS A HISTORIC STEP TOWARDS LASTING PEACE IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS"

On Saturday, I also had a phone conversation with my brother, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. A new era had already begun in our region with the liberation of Karabakh after 30 years of occupation. The agreement reached in Washington on August 8 was a historic step on the path to establishing lasting peace in the South Caucasus. It is also pleasing that the restrictions on Azerbaijan are no longer on the agenda. I expressed to my brother Ilham the satisfaction we feel about all of this.

I emphasized that we will always be by their side as Turkey. Today, we discussed the same issue with the Prime Minister of Armenia, Mr. Pashinyan. With the establishment of a peaceful environment, the restoration of land and railways in our region, the opening of border gates, and the possibility of free flow of trade will be in the interest of all countries in the region. Tomorrow, we will host the President of Georgia, Mr. Kavelaşvili, in Ankara.

We successfully held our Supreme Military Council, which is of critical importance for our Turkish Armed Forces. I convey my thanks to our officers who have been retired.

We came together at the 38th ordinary general assembly of the D-8, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.

"WE DID NOT TURN A DEAF EAR TO CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM"

Despite all the efforts of the main opposition to undermine the Turkish economy, our gross reserves have risen to 169 billion dollars. Again, despite the provocations of the opposition, the negotiations conducted with our public workers resulted in a consensus.

We will never allow our country to be pushed out of the equation through various dirty tricks. On this difficult journey, we are not only facing our enemies outside; we are also struggling with their extensions inside. When the AKP came to power in 2002, circles whose rent taps were cut off and who were equalized with the people are attacking the state and our nation's institutions. No one, including ourselves, is beyond criticism. We have never turned a deaf ear to constructive criticism.

But we will not allow 5th column activities to be carried out in our country under the pretext of criticism. We consider it more virtuous to teach a lesson to those who are insolent and target the reputation of the state and the gains of the nation than to clothe 40 orphans.

IMAMOĞLU REFERENCE TO THE FAKE DIPLOMA AGENDA

They tried to create suspicion through exams by distorting a congratulatory message hung on the wall of one of our schools in Bursa. When it turned out that all their claims were lies, they quietly retreated to their corners. They slandered our police and judicial members with a setup to whitewash the bribery scandal in Manavgat. If there is a setup, apply to the court with the 32-hour recording you have. They immediately shifted into reverse gear here too. The target in this attrition operation is not just our government. Press ethics, the reputation of state institutions, Turkey's gains—none of these matter to them.

They have taken a brush of slander in their hands and are smearing everyone they come across. The relevant institutions of our state are the ones that detected the crime a year ago, filed a complaint, referred it to the judiciary, and ensured the capture of the suspects. Judicial proceedings have been initiated against 220 suspects, and a public lawsuit has been filed against 199 suspects. 37 people have been arrested, and judicial control decisions have been made for 157 people.

Whoever violates the rights of the nation, we will grab them by the collar. Just as the positions and titles of those who were caught in Istanbul 30 years later were not considered, no one's tears were shed in this file either. More importantly, no one took to the streets to whitewash members of a criminal organization. No calls were made to boycott national brands. No matter what you do, you cannot dilute Turkey's fight against bribe-takers, criminal organizations, and political loan sharks who seize the nation's property. Be a little honest, act with at least a minimum sense of responsibility towards the state whose bread you eat."