Erdoğan's outburst against the Council of State and the Constitutional Court: 'I cannot digest these decisions'

AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan made statements to journalists on the plane returning from his visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Egypt.

Erdoğan, who went to Egypt after 12 years, said he made this visit due to Sisi's intense insistence.

Stating that the process regarding the landslide that occurred at the mining site in Erzincan is ongoing, Erdoğan said, "The technical examinations and investigations of this landslide have begun. Steps will certainly be taken according to the results of the investigations."

Speaking about the Constitutional Court and the Council of State, Erdoğan said, "I cannot digest these decisions taken by the Constitutional Court. The Council of State does this from time to time and disturbs us with such decisions, but the Constitutional Court taking such decisions frequently disturbs us in a serious sense."

Erdoğan's statements are as follows;

Distinguished members of the press, dear friends, I greet you with my most heartfelt feelings and respect. We have completed our visits to the United Arab Emirates and Egypt. I thank the President of the United Arab Emirates, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and the President of Egypt, His Excellency Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, for their gracious hospitality.

UAE VISIT

During our visit to the United Arab Emirates, we attended the World Government Summit held in Dubai, where we were invited as a guest of honor. In our address to the summit, we shared the experiences of Turkey, which has taken major steps in the fields of political stability, strong governance, democracy, diplomacy, and the economy over the last 21 years. We also expressed our stance regarding the crisis in Gaza and the Palestinian cause, as well as our solution proposals for lasting peace.

There can be no peace without Israel accepting the most fundamental rights of the Palestinian people and the establishment of a Palestinian State within the 1967 borders. It is Israel's lawless, inhumane, occupation, oppression, and massacre policies that have turned our region into a place of fire. We comprehensively discussed our bilateral relations, which are gaining momentum in every field, with the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. We expressed our satisfaction that our trade volume exceeded 20 billion dollars last year.

We agreed to maintain the momentum in our cooperation and move this amount to higher levels. We will hold the first meeting of the High-Level Strategic Council, which we established last year, in Turkey as soon as possible. Defense industry projects, energy, and investment issues were also at the top of our agenda. We met with senior executives of international investment companies to evaluate the opportunities in our country. As a matter of fact, we had meetings with my counterparts from participating countries on the occasion of this summit. In this context, we held meetings with the President of the Maldives, His Excellency Muizzu, the Prime Minister of Libya, His Excellency Dbeibeh, the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, His Excellency Barzani, and the President of Rwanda, His Excellency Kagame, respectively.

EGYPT VISIT

Dear friends, after our Dubai visit, we moved to Cairo. This visit, which we made upon the invitation of Egyptian President Sisi, was also quite sincere, productive, and successful. I was particularly pleased that Mr. Sisi personally came to the airport with his spouse to welcome us. In our meetings, we discussed our relations, which have gained momentum in every field, including military and defense industry, in the recent period. We agreed to hold our High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council meeting as soon as possible. Mr. Sisi's inauguration ceremony is scheduled for the beginning of April. Therefore, he will pay a visit to Turkey in April or May. We are determined to reach our 15 billion dollar target in trade volume with Egypt, our largest trading partner on the African continent.

In addition to bilateral issues, we exchanged views on regional issues, especially Palestine. We intend to further increase our cooperation with Egypt to ensure that the massacres in Gaza are stopped as soon as possible and that the Palestinian cause reaches a permanent and sustainable solution. As you know, Egypt has a special place in the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza. We have always been in close cooperation with our Egyptian brothers regarding the delivery of our humanitarian aid to Gaza. I thank them once again for the facilities they provided in the delivery of aid to Gaza. We also discussed the possibilities of increasing humanitarian aid shipments to Gaza and providing more health services. I expressed to Mr. Sisi that we appreciate and support Egypt's resolute stance against Israel's policy of exiling the people of Gaza from their lands. There is no doubt that our coordination with Egypt will make a significant contribution to the peace, tranquility, and stability of our region. We are particularly pleased that this thought of ours is also shared by our Egyptian brothers. I wish our visits to be auspicious. I thank the presidents of both countries once again for the hospitality shown to me and my delegation.

Q&A

You said you discussed the situation of civilians in the Rafah region in Egypt. Israel has a plan to attack there. Warnings are coming from China to the United Kingdom, the EU, and the USA, but Israel is not listening. Was this issue addressed in your bilateral meeting? Apart from this, the aid that can reach Gaza is also very limited. What kind of step will be taken regarding aid?

There are some positive developments regarding the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza. We discussed these developments, especially with Egyptian President His Excellency Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. They said they would continue to pressure Israel on this issue. Our Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan is also continuing his necessary meetings. We will also hold meetings mainly with Mr. Sisi and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. United States officials also say they will continue to pressure Israel on this issue. The number of aid trucks reaching Gaza has increased to 200-250, but this is insufficient. It is said that this number will increase to the level of 500-600 trucks. If we can reach this figure, we can only talk about a solution in terms of needs. On the other hand, Israel's attacks on the Rafah region are their usual heartlessness. We also discussed the issue with Mr. Sisi. We used the expression, "It is impossible for us to compromise on the safety of the people there." Think about it, is there any aspect of raining bombs on civilians after telling them "go to this region, it is safe" that is compatible with humanitarian values, the law of war, international law, and human rights? Humanity must hear this cry as soon as possible. The sin and accountability of remaining silent about this genocide are also very great. History will judge those who turned a blind eye to the deliberate massacre of those people. Those who signed this genocide have already been declared guilty before history.

"IT REMAINS INCONCLUSIVE DUE TO THE US'S NEGATIVE APPROACHES"

Many institutions, organizations, and countries, especially the United Nations, know the approach and perspective Turkey has put forward for a ceasefire and lasting peace in Gaza. I want to ask how Turkey's policy is reflected on a global scale.

The reactions of both us, our friends, and the peoples in various parts of the world ensured Israel's loneliness in the United Nations General Assembly. However, at the stage reached, the bloodshed has not stopped. Israel's brutal attacks are still continuing. Officials of some Western countries have only recently started to voice the sentences that we started to establish and have been repeating constantly in the days when these attacks began. Unfortunately, calls for peace remain inconclusive due to the negative approaches of the United States of America. America says it has sent some of its high-level officials to the region to supposedly solve this, but no results are obtained. Although the situation is like this, we continue to work to ensure a ceasefire and peace. Because we have no other way out. When someone from the West contacts us, we especially express these issues to them as well. We say to them, "Let's make some initiatives, maybe we will get some results from there." We also see what kind of remorse some countries that took Israel's side at the beginning of the process are in now. We continue our efforts for lasting peace. The world can no longer ignore the fact that the solution is the establishment of an independent, sovereign, geographically integrated Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, based on the 1967 borders. Turkey defends not only its Palestinian brothers but also human rights, peace, and international law. Turkey has demonstrated its sincerity on this issue in the clearest way. Now, this distorted structure of the global system, which paves the way for new massacres, must be changed and effective oversight mechanisms must be established.

"THERE ARE VERY CRITICAL TESTS AHEAD"

Your meeting with President Sisi during your Egypt visit was followed with interest in the world. Can we say that a new era has begun in Turkey-Egypt relations?

Turkey and Egypt are two important countries in the region. Our contacts had been cut off for 12 years. We came together there with the intervention of the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim, at the World Cup and started the normalization process. This visit of ours to Egypt took place with Mr. Sisi's very insistent invitation. I also proposed to them that our High-Level Strategic Council Meeting be held and that this step be taken. They accepted this as well. Our Foreign Ministers will continue their contacts. Most likely, Mr. Sisi will pay a return visit by coming to Ankara in April or May. We have deep-rooted ties and unity with Egypt in both cultural and historical terms. We share not only the same history but also the same sea with Egypt, and the importance of that sea in the global equation is increasing day by day. On the other hand, foreign policy is built on the axis of mutual interest and managed on that ground. Therefore, synchronized steps of the two countries together and in the same direction are undoubtedly in their interest. Both we and the Egyptian side are aware of this reality, and the new era is being built on this solid foundation. There are very critical tests ahead of us, and we do not know what unforeseen difficult processes await the world in the future. For this reason, we have to be together to protect peace and tranquility both in our region and in the world from today. There are areas of cooperation ahead that will develop both countries, and steps will be taken as the time comes.

FIDAN, KALIN, AND GÜLER'S SUCCESSIVE VISITS TO IRAQ

You stated that you met with the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq, Masrour Barzani. We are also curious because Ankara has been warning Sulaymaniyah about the PKK/YPG terrorist organization for some time. However, both Sulaymaniyah and Bafel Talabani continue their support for the terrorist organization. How will Turkey respond to this attitude of Sulaymaniyah? Recently, there have been successive visits by Mr. Hakan Fidan, Mr. İbrahim Kalın, and Mr. Yaşar Güler. We are curious about the behind-the-scenes of these visits. Within the framework of your meeting with Barzani, will there be a joint fight against the terrorist organization with Iraq?

Turkey is a friend to its friends. Our Minister of Foreign Affairs Hakan Fidan, our Minister of National Defense Yaşar Güler, and our MIT President İbrahim Kalın carried out a series of visits to Iraq one after another. These visits softened the atmosphere created by these negative developments in Iraq and there were good developments in terms of taking steps between Turkey and Iraq, both regarding the central administration and Northern Iraq. As long as we do not compromise on honesty and bravery, and especially as long as a 'terroristan' is not allowed to be established right at our borders, we will take all kinds of steps in this region together with our neighbors. No one shows the respect we show regarding the territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria. We have made warnings many times regarding this negative approach of Sulaymaniyah. We said, "We see new, different formations here, do not give them an opportunity, otherwise you will be left alone." Because Sulaymaniyah is a place that is always under our hand, where our kinsmen are located. The momentum we have achieved with the Erbil administration regarding the fight against terrorism is progressing in a positive direction. However, Sulaymaniyah, that is, the PUK administration, unfortunately continues to protect the terrorist organization PKK/YPG/PYD despite our repeated warnings. Now, in the meeting we held, we brought this issue to the agenda and made our warning. Let no one expect a different stance from us, we will give the necessary reaction. We cannot overlook this issue. We are taking the steps we can, and we will. We may have tolerance for many issues, but if the subject is our survival and national security, we close the doors of tolerance completely and do whatever is necessary. But if the goal is to harbor hostility towards us, we have a reaction to that too, we have measures to take, and we will not hesitate to take stricter steps.

"A TRUE WIN-WIN PROJECT"

Did a concrete result, such as 'let's proceed with this calendar', emerge regarding the Development Road project during this visit?

The Development Road Project is a giant project that includes the UAE administration, Iraq, and us. There is a sensitivity of Northern Iraq in this project. We have our own sensitivity. That is why we are taking our steps. When we come together with the Abu Dhabi administration, one of the topics is definitely this. Hopefully, we will put this on track in the most ideal way. During our previous meeting, the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, proposed, "Let's set a period of 60 days and let all our friends and relevant units go beyond planning studies and start project design studies." Our Minister of Transport Abdulkadir Uraloğlu is currently continuing his meetings with his counterparts. Hopefully, these studies will move from project and plan to implementation, and the main actors of this issue will be Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Iraq. We will continue our work in this way. This road will become a new Silk Road for our region and will also serve regional peace. This road, which will provide access to the European market for the Persian Gulf and the surrounding countries via Turkey, is a true win-win project.

"WE CONTINUE THESE SEARCHES IN OUR MEETINGS WITH PUTIN AND ZELENSKY"

Russian President Vladimir Putin gave an interview to a Western journalist for the first time in two years. In the interview, while explaining what happened with Ukraine under Turkey's mediation, he said, "We were reaching a full agreement, the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson intervened, misled Ukraine, and peace did not happen." He explained how critical the importance of the peace talks in Turkey was. Are there any expectations and an initiative from Turkey on this matter?

To be honest, there is sincerity in these statements of Mr. Putin. In these talks, which we can evaluate as the Istanbul process, we took all kinds of sincere steps. My relevant minister friends held meetings with the Russian side on this matter. We worked result-oriented, but peace could not be established in any way. However, we cannot just leave and go because we could not get results from here. We will not give up the search for peace. We will continue to do whatever we can to ensure peace. Before the former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson withdrew from peace efforts, we worked together, we continued our efforts, but it did not happen. Recently, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron came to visit us, and we discussed these issues with him as well. If Mr. Putin has one-on-one exchanges with us during this process or if Russia's relevant ministers intervene here separately, we will follow this process with them and try to get results. So far, we have provided concrete results that serve peace in the Ukraine-Russia war. Many important developments have taken place, from prisoner exchanges to the grain corridor. We even brought the parties together in Turkey more than once. We can do this again and open the door to peace with a solution-oriented process management cleared of external influences. We continue these searches in our meetings with both Mr. Putin and Mr. Zelensky. From the very beginning, we have argued that a just peace is better than war and we strive to take all our steps with this understanding. As long as we want peace, we will definitely find a way to reach it.

WHAT IS THE LATEST STATUS IN THE F-16 PROCUREMENT PROCESS?

Following Turkey's approval of Sweden's NATO membership, it is commented that a positive atmosphere has been captured in Turkey-US relations after a long time with the US taking steps in the F-16 procurement process. Can we really talk about a positive atmosphere between Ankara and Washington? If so, will this positive atmosphere have a positive reflection on contentious issues such as FETÖ, PKK/YPG, S-400, and F-35?

We can talk about some positive developments between us and the US as a result of these latest steps we have taken. The atmosphere in Congress is currently positive. Similarly, positive voices are coming from the Senate. We can say that the number of issues we think similarly or agree on with the US is increasing. There is no negative trend at the moment, on the contrary, there is a positive development. Regarding this issue, the relevant ministers also tell their counterparts in our country that there are positive developments. They give this information on these issues to both Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, MIT President İbrahim Kalın, and our Chief Advisor for Foreign Policy and Security Akif Çağatay Kılıç. They say, "We are doing our best. You saw Mr. Biden's wet-signed letter here." We said, "You also saw our wet-signed approval document. More than all, you heard the decision that came out of our parliament and you thanked us over and over again. We expect what comes next from you," and we continue on our way. Similarly, the Swedish Prime Minister calling us and thanking us on this issue is a sign that the step we have taken is going in a positive direction.

HOUSING BUILT IN THE EARTHQUAKE ZONE

1 year has passed since the February 6 earthquakes. You were in the earthquake zone once again on the anniversary. You came together with the citizens there, you delivered the completed houses. Can you evaluate the point reached in terms of healing the wounds, rebuilding and reviving the houses and cities at the end of one year? Also, what did the citizens express to you about what the state has done during this period in your conversations with them there?

In our visits to the earthquake zone, our citizens expressed to us that our government did not leave them out and kept its promise. We are trying to complete the houses under construction in the region. As the constructions are finished and the houses are completed, we deliver them to their owners. By keeping our promise, we have shown that we have started an unprecedented construction mobilization. Actually, the opposition knows this very well too. The other day in Hatay, the public booed the opposition's mayors and chairmen there. They didn't even let them into the square. They said, "We don't believe you. You deceived us. Now you are shamelessly appearing before us again." We continue to build houses, village houses, and barns in the region step by step. Hopefully, as we finish them, we deliver them to our citizens. The houses give confidence with their infrastructure and superstructure. We are running day and night to reunite our earthquake-victim brothers and sisters with their safe, peaceful, and durable homes as soon as possible. The number of houses and village houses we have delivered to the rightful owners by drawing lots in just the five provinces we visited is over 31 thousand. Hopefully, we will deliver 75 thousand houses across the earthquake zone within two months. In the following period, we will bring 15-20 thousand houses and village houses together with their rightful owners every month. Thus, we will have largely fulfilled our promise to finish the constructions before a year has passed since the foundation was laid. Our goal is to deliver 200 thousand houses to our citizens by the end of the year. Then we will quickly increase this number to 390 thousand. We are continuing on our way. Our goal is to achieve a very serious success in local governments with the support of our people in order to deliver our services to our people more effectively. We are continuing our work in these places in the best way possible.

LANDSLIDE AT THE MINE SITE IN ERZINCAN

Very intensive work was started from the very first moment regarding the collapse at the mine that occurred in Erzincan. It is still continuing. Judicial investigations are also continuing. Do you have a general evaluation of all these?

Unfortunately, a landslide of such a large scale occurred here as well. Unfortunately, 9 of our citizens are currently under the soil in this place where around 600 miners work. Search and rescue efforts are continuing. Our governor was in the region from the very first moment. Our Minister of Interior Ali Yerlikaya personally intervened in the incident together with AFAD. The Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar was with us. We thought it would be beneficial for him to return to the country and go to the scene, and we quickly sent him to the region as well. As of today, our Ministers of Interior and Energy and Natural Resources are following the events closely and have taken over the coordination of the work. The technical examinations and investigations of this landslide have begun. Steps will certainly be taken according to the results of the investigations. At this stage, our priority is to reach our miners.

"NONE OF THESE WILL YIELD ANY RESULTS FOR THEM, THEY ARE STRIVING IN VAIN"

As in every election period, as the elections approach, certain circles have gone on the offensive to disrupt social peace. It was as if buttons were pressed at the same time. Terrorist organizations with different structures are carrying out attacks. What are your findings on this matter?

These are events that we unfortunately experience every period, before every election. One way or another, whatever they do, everything will take its course. There are not even two months left until the elections here. The countdown has already begun. MHP Chairman Devlet Bahçeli also put forward some very clear and net issues at his party's group meeting. I share the same opinions. The opposition is especially bringing the refugee issue to the agenda. None of these will yield any results for them, they are striving in vain. March 31 will definitely be the day when we will see that some are completely wiped off the political scene. Just as some were wiped out on May 28, and some are currently trying to stand on their feet in a half-baked way, the result of these will be similar. In this respect, we are carrying out our work as the People's Alliance (Cumhur İttifakı) intensively with our organizations, both in metropolitan cities and in provinces and districts. Now our friends are carrying out the work regarding the council members together with our deputy chairmen in Ankara. Hopefully, we will join them too. As you know, I have a Samsun rally. Samsun is very, very important for us. After that, we will hold our Giresun and Ordu rallies. Thus, we want to pull the Black Sea together a bit.

AYM AND COUNCIL OF STATE STATEMENT: I CANNOT DIGEST THESE DECISIONS

450 judges and prosecutors were dismissed on the grounds that they were linked to FETÖ. The 5th Chamber of the Council of State reinstated these 450 judges and prosecutors. There was an objection by the HSK to this scandal. The Council of State did not take this objection into consideration. This scandal also received a very serious reaction from the public. We are curious about your thoughts and attitude on this matter.

We broke the back of this evil network, this terrorist structure called FETÖ. We drained the FETÖ swamp, but our work of cleaning the flies is still continuing. We will continue to explain the true face of FETÖ and fight against them in every field. Our fight is not over. We will continue until the last puppet is made unable to harm Turkey. We are tearing off the different masks on their faces and they are thus emerging. We will be on the necks of these spineless charlatans who take every shape. However, it is not possible for us to remain silent about this decision taken by the Council of State. Just as we do not remain unresponsive as the People's Alliance to some strange decisions taken by the Constitutional Court, we cannot remain silent about this either. Furthermore, I cannot digest these decisions taken by the Constitutional Court. The Council of State does this from time to time and disturbs us with such decisions, but the Constitutional Court taking such decisions frequently disturbs us in a serious sense. For example, the Constitutional Court has also taken a decision regarding the BTK. I mean, where will you enter this from? How can such a decision be taken? We are also going over and over this issue, we will go. We will follow this matter in the Council of State in the same way.

News Source: 12punto