President Erdoğan's statement: 'I am proud of the youth who are the guides of the Century of Türkiye': He addressed the youth and national athletes

Erdoğan said, "All of these friends of ours are currently carrying out, and will continue to carry out, work for the preparation of a new constitution. Because we can no longer continue with the constitution of 20 years ago. A new constitution, and we will hopefully do this together with you, and by addressing our shortcomings in this new constitution, we will hopefully bring a new generation constitution to our nation."

Speaking there, Erdoğan stated that he felt the joy of being together with the youth on the occasion of the May 19 Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day.

Expressing that they were together with young representatives of Türkiye who have achieved significant work in science, art, civil society, and technology, as well as national athletes who run from success to success in different branches today, Erdoğan congratulated the youth for the successes they have achieved.

Wishing for the success of the youth to be permanent, Erdoğan conveyed his gratitude to the youth and the mothers, fathers, and instructors who raised them for the joy they brought to the country.

Expressing that he is proud of all the youth who are the architects of tomorrow, the guarantee of the future, and the guides of the Century of Türkiye, Erdoğan addressed the youth, saying, "You are the pride of Türkiye. You are the source of our nation's trust. Each of you is the pride of these lands, the keystones of our future. May the Almighty make your path, your fortune, and your mind clear."

Stating that history, written with glory and honor, adorned with foresight and wisdom, and given its final form with compassion and mercy, is full of many difficulties, Erdoğan emphasized that the epic of victory and resurrection has been rewritten every time, from the fronts of Malazgirt to the conquest of Istanbul, from the ridges of Çanakkale to the National Struggle, and from the Cyprus Peace Operation to July 15.

Pointing out that the greatest share in these epics undoubtedly belongs to the youth raised in the bosom of the nation, Erdoğan underlined that May 19, 1919, is one of the best examples of this.

"WE ARE RUNNING FROM SUCCESS TO SUCCESS IN EVERY FIELD"

"Exactly 106 years ago, we took the first step on the path to a victory that the world looks at with envy today, when we broke the chains of captivity one by one, defeated imperial powers, and stamped the seal of Islam on these lands again," said Erdoğan, adding:

"The fire of independence lit in Samsun on May 19, 1919, spread like waves to every corner of Anatolia in a very short time. As a result, it was crowned with a magnificent victory thanks to the struggle adorned with the sacrifices of our youth like you, together with our nation. Our journey, spanning centuries from a glorious past to a bright future, continues today with the same determination. We are running from success to success in every field, from sports to defense, from diplomacy to security, from science to technology, from energy to education. I want you to know this. This journey will never end until we reach our Century of Türkiye goal. After we hopefully turn the corner of a terror-free Türkiye smoothly, we will reach the destination of the Century of Türkiye much faster. As our greatest work, we will hopefully entrust you with a Türkiye where there is security, peace, and prosperity, and where not even a trace of terror remains."

Wishing mercy upon all the martyrs who shielded their chests against shameless attacks so that the glorious crescent would wave in the sky like the dawn for independence and the future, Erdoğan commemorated all the veterans who gave life to the thousand-breathed chest of the land of heroes with their lives and blood with gratitude and appreciation.

Commemorating with respect all members of the heroic army, especially Gazi Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and his comrades-in-arms, and all the soldiers of the War of Independence, Erdoğan congratulated the youth on the May 19 Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day.

"THERE IS PEACE AND HAPPINESS FOR ALL MY SHEPHERD BROTHERS"

After his speech, President Erdoğan answered questions from the youth.

A young man named Seyithan from Mardin stated that as a young person from Mardin, they are very happy that peace now prevails in this beautiful geography, which was associated with terror for years.

Emphasizing that growing up in these lands where brotherhood, peace, and trust are sprouting again and looking to the future with hope is very valuable for them, the young man said, "Thanks to you, it is no longer the sound of gunfire that is heard, but the laughter of children. Previously, terror dominated the region. During my time, the effects of terror were still felt. But now, thanks to you, terror will never be mentioned. Thanks to your determined stance, perhaps our children will not even remember terror. Mr. President, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the struggle you have waged for a terror-free Türkiye and the determination you have shown, and I offer my gratitude."

When asked "what will happen in the coming process," Erdoğan said that first of all, it is seen that folk dances are being performed in the squares and the plateaus are starting to become festive. Erdoğan noted the following:

"All my shepherd brothers will now take their animals, small and large cattle, and go up to the plateaus comfortably. There, they will all say together, 'these are my animals, this is the small cattle, this is the large cattle,' and we will be proud of them. All the shepherd brothers I have spoken to right now have peace and happiness. I hope you, too, will open up to the plateaus as soon as you finish school, raise sacrificial animals, and when you help your mothers and fathers, although they won't be ready for this Eid al-Adha, hopefully they will be ready for the ones after that. Thus, the moment my citizen says, 'I am now living in my country as free and independent,' we will have done our duty."

"IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, THE STRUGGLE WILL NOW TAKE PLACE IN A VERY DIFFERENT WAY"

To the question of Modern Pentathlon Olympic Athlete İlke Özyüksel Mihrioğlu, "Mr. President, we know that you follow the Olympics and all athletes closely and are very interested. Is there a branch that you follow closely and enjoy watching in this process?" Erdoğan replied, "Now, can we say we don't watch your branch? You know, it's very troublesome. When it hits, it takes down. Now, Mr. Osman, as Minister, says 'modern pentathlon.' But I wonder if all my young friends here have followed this up to a point or if they can't. But if you express it, if you explain it, it would be much better."

Upon this, Mihrioğlu provided information that modern pentathlon is an Olympic branch in which they compete in 5 different disciplines consisting of running, swimming, shooting, fencing, and an obstacle course, but which results in a single medal, saying, "We have our World Cup final in July. We have the European Championship at the end of July, and our World Championship in Lithuania at the end of August."

President Erdoğan also said, "Follow it well, follow it closely. I congratulate you."

A young man named Tuncer Baha Sezerer also recalled that they won the "Best Commercialization Potential" award in the "Social Innovation" category at the TEKNOFEST 25 competitions held in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, and expressed that TEKNOFEST opens the horizons of young people and broadens their vision with national technology moves.

Sezerer stated that as youth, they are proud of Türkiye, which is getting stronger thanks to competitions like TEKNOFEST and national technology, and thanked President Erdoğan.

Upon Sezerer's question, "What concrete steps are you taking to increase Türkiye's global competitiveness in the field of artificial intelligence? What kind of cooperation are you planning between the private sector, universities, and public institutions in this field?" President Erdoğan said that universities with technical infrastructure are currently pursuing this as a priority.

Reminding that Istanbul Technical University is one of them, Erdoğan noted the following:

"Yıldız is the same, Middle East is the same. These universities are focusing on artificial intelligence. Also, of course, Baykar, which is interested in TEKNOFEST, is also interested in this subject in a different way. Now, as Baykar, they have also established the high school part, that is, the Baykar Science High School. Thus, our youth trained in this way will come from here to university. In this artificial intelligence, the struggle and competition will now take place in a much different way."

Recalling his visit to Albania, Erdoğan said, "Perhaps some of you who watched it in Albania saw it. Albania did an interesting thing in the presentation. It brought the heads of state and prime ministers of all countries to the screen with artificial intelligence. It was very interesting, and there, the head of state or prime minister of each country was introduced by that artificial intelligence. Hopefully, we have also emerged and are emerging into the field with such an infrastructure in the upcoming competition. We trust ourselves, we trust you, and thus we are walking into the future with a strong artificial intelligence infrastructure, hopefully."

"IT INCREASES OUR SELF-CONFIDENCE FOR THE FUTURE"

National swimmer Kuzey Tunçelli also thanked President Erdoğan for his support and asked, "If you were to return to your younger years, is there an Olympic branch you would want to do? If so, what is it?" Erdoğan replied, "Kuzey, you have obviously cracked this business. You swim 1500 meters. Where would I find the ability to swim 1500 meters?"

Erdoğan, who chatted with Tunçelli for a while, said that they expect medals one after another from him in the championships.

Hacer Karakaş, a senior student at Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University, Department of English Finance, stated that she would graduate from the university next week wearing a headscarf and said, "You gifted us doctors, prosecutors, judges, deputy ministers, and diplomats wearing headscarves. Your struggle illuminated our path, and we have made it our principle to be loyal and work harder for this. Thank you very much."

Upon Karakaş's question, "Türkiye is currently playing a very important peaceful role in the Palestinian genocide and the Russia-Ukraine crisis. You are actually holding the hand of hope right now, and all countries in the world are following your steps. What will be our roadmap as a country in global diplomacy and global peace? How do you suggest we, the youth, read this map better?" Erdoğan replied, "You spoke like a diplomat."

Upon Karakaş stating that she "takes him as a role model," Erdoğan said, "Especially as we see that we are training diplomats in international relations and students in diplomatic relations from these universities for the future, this increases our self-confidence for the future. You are now starting this from the capital Ankara, hopefully, you will continue it."

"WE WILL BRING A NEW GENERATION CONSTITUTION TO OUR NATION"

Upon a student's question, "Is there any work on a new constitution right now? Are there any steps being taken?" Erdoğan emphasized that it is not possible not to work on or to postpone the new constitution. Erdoğan noted the following:

"All of these friends of ours are currently carrying out, and will continue to carry out, work for the preparation of a new constitution. Because we can no longer continue with the constitution of 20 years ago. A new constitution, and we will hopefully do this together with you, and by addressing our shortcomings in this new constitution, we will hopefully bring a new generation constitution to our nation."

Stating that he finds his meeting with the youth on the occasion of the May 19 Commemoration of Atatürk, Youth and Sports Day very important, Erdoğan wished the youth success in their university lives and happiness with their parents.