Turkish Parliament resumes work after 2.5 months: Erdoğan to deliver speech

The 4th Legislative Year of the 28th Term of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) begins today. At the opening ceremony, which will take place after a 2.5-month break, AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will deliver a speech in the General Assembly.

However, the CHP leadership announced that it would not attend the opening session, citing recent operations targeting mayors and party organizations as the reason. In this context, CHP deputies will not welcome Erdoğan and will not listen to his speech in the General Assembly.

According to NTV, Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş reacted to the CHP's decision, stating, "These things should be left behind." Reminding that the CHP attended last year's opening ceremony in full force, Kurtulmuş said:

"The CHP has lost nothing by this. This is what I call the maturity of democracy. You can hold rallies and criticize the President, that is, you can criticize him through his role as AKP Chairman, but he is ultimately the head of state, and I believe it is necessary to take part in such official greetings and ceremonies. Turkey should now leave these things behind."

The special session will begin at 14:00 under the chairmanship of Kurtulmuş. Erdoğan is expected to deliver important messages regarding both domestic and foreign policy, particularly on Gaza, during his speech.

Cabinet members, high-ranking judicial representatives, military officials, ambassadors, and journalists will also take their places at the session in the General Assembly. Additionally, a reception hosted by Kurtulmuş will be held in the Parliament's ceremonial hall to mark the start of the new legislative year.