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"We are determined not to allow any structure along the Iraq and Syria line that would pose a threat to our country"

Presidency of The Republic of Turkey

13.07.2024

Speaking at the National Defense University's Graduation Ceremony, President Erdoğan said: "We will complete the missing links of the security belt along our southern border in Syria on the basis of Syria's territorial integrity. We are determined not to allow any structure along the Iraq and Syria line that would pose a threat to our country."

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a speech at the graduation ceremony of the National Defense University.

Beginning his speech by sharing the joy of graduation of 181 officers, 54 of whom were from friendly and brotherly countries, President Erdoğan congratulated all the graduating officers.

Pointing out that Türkiye's geographical location brings threats and dangers as well as strategic advantages, President Erdoğan said: "Almost every crisis that occupies humanity's agenda is taking place around our country. It is almost 2.5 years since the war between Russia and Ukraine broke out. The conflicts, in which one side has not been able to gain complete superiority over the other, continue, escalating from time to time and causing serious loss of life and destruction. I regret to say that there is no strong will to end the war in the near future."

Emphasizing that the region will continue to bear the burden of war for some time to come, President Erdoğan said that Türkiye has done and will continue to do its utmost to stop this bloodbath.

"WE ARE WORKING HARD FOR A CEASEFIRE IN GAZA"

With regard to Israel's attacks in Gaza, President Erdoğan said: "Words no longer suffice to describe the massacre in Gaza. Nearly 40 thousand innocent Palestinian brothers and sisters, including 16 thousand children, lost their lives. Approximately 90 thousand innocent people were wounded. Almost three quarters of Gaza has turned into a pile of rubble due to Israel's attacks directly targeting civilian settlements. None of the codes, rules and red lines of the law of war were taken into account. Rather, they were even deliberately violated. Let me say this loud and clear; what has been happening in Gaza since October 7 is not war, it is not a struggle to ensure the security of the state, it is not self-defense at all. What we are witnessing in Gaza is outright genocide, the most outrageous example of massacre, barbarism and genocide. This stain of shame will never be wiped off the foreheads of those who spilled the blood of the innocents, nor of those who have been watching the insanity from the stands for nine months. As long as Israel pursue its security by occupying more land, no country in our region, including Türkiye, can feel 100 percent safe. Given this fact, while we show our strongest reaction to the oppression, we are also working hard to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza and pave the way for a lasting peace."

"It is our wish that a ceasefire is declared as soon as possible and the people of Gaza can breathe a sigh of relief," President Erdoğan said. "We made it very clear to our interlocutors at the NATO Summit that more pressure should be put on the Israeli government. We emphasized in every meeting that NATO cannot ignore the Gaza crisis and that the consequences of this would be very severe."

GREAT ACHIEVEMENTS IN THE FIGHT AGAINST TERROR

"As we work to resolve the crises in our region, we do not neglect the security of our homeland and our citizens. We are a country that has fought hard against separatist terrorism for 40 years and paid a great price for this cause," President Erdoğan said.

"We have repeatedly demonstrated that not a single inch of our sacred homeland can be violated. Thousands of our sons and daughters died a martyr's death, but we did not leave this country, which we made our homeland with the blood of martyrs, to cowards. Thanks to the sacrifices, courage and efforts of our heroic security forces, we have achieved very important successes in the fight against terrorism. The separatist organization is no longer able to carry out terrorist acts within our borders. In Iraq and Syria, the organization is widely cornered. With our soldiers, police, gendarmerie and intelligence officers, we are after them everywhere," President Erdoğan said.

"WE WILL SEAL OFF THE LOCK VERY SOON IN THE CLAW OPERATION ZONE IN NORTHERN IRAQ"

Noting that serious blows were dealt to the terrorist organization with the great contribution of our domestic and national weapon systems, President Erdoğan said: "We will seal off the lock very soon in the Claw Operation zone in Northern Iraq."

"We will complete the missing links of the security belt along our southern border in Syria on the basis of Syria's territorial integrity. We are determined not to allow any structure along the Iraq and Syria line that would pose a threat to our country," President Erdoğan said.

"Just looking at the type and variety of weapons seized is enough to reveal how Türkiye is fighting a multi-national terror consortium of multiple partners. As a state, we are clearly aware of the fact that as long as terrorists with their guns pointing towards Türkiye exist beyond our borders, we cannot live peacefully here. If we want to realize our declared goals in economy, foreign policy, democracy, rights and freedoms, we have to drain the swamp of terrorism. Otherwise, we cannot save ourselves from wasting energy and time," President Erdoğan said.

Stating that the vision of the Century of Türkiye symbolizes an ideal in which the scourge of terrorism that has plagued the country will come to an end, President Erdoğan said: "We will realize this ideal, the infrastructure of which we have built in the last 22 years, step by step with your endeavors. We are determined and resolute in this regard."

"We do not see the provocations that took place last week in some of our provinces and simultaneously in the north of Syria as independent from this. The message intended to be conveyed through vandals and street gangs is clear. Someone is trying to get Türkiye accustomed to living side by side with terrorists whom they disguise under different names. I want it to be known that we are not used to it and we will not get used to it. Inshallah, we will tear up this insidious plan just like the previous ones. We will manage this process patiently, conscientiously and prudently. We will not allow those who have exploited our geography for years with divide and rule plans to stage the same scenario again," President Erdoğan said.

Noting that Türkiye will observe the 8th anniversary of the July 15 coup attempt on Monday, President Erdoğan remembered with grace the heroic martyrs who turned that dark night into a bright morning at the cost of their lives and expressed his gratitude to the veterans.

"WE WILL CONTINUE OUR FIGHT AGAINST FETO METICULOUSLY"

Noting that they took very critical steps after July 15 to prevent Türkiye from facing similar treacherous attempts ever again, President Erdoğan said: "We have largely purged our institutions, especially our security units, which FETO had secretly infiltrated for 40 years, of the organization's members. I would like to share some numbers with you here. On July 15, 10,468 of the 32,189 officers serving in the Armed Forces, namely 33 percent of all officers, were dismissed from our army. The situation was much worse for staff officers. Because one of the most important places that the organization had targeted since the 80s and where it had swarmed time was the War Academies, in other words, the staff system. Out of 1886 staff officers, 1524, namely 81 percent, were dismissed due to FETO."

"With the steps we have taken, we have not only healed the wounds inflicted by FETO in the ranks of the military in a very short time, but have also gone beyond in many areas," President Erdoğan said. "We will continue our fight against FETO meticulously, without letting our guard down, never becoming complacent and never falling into the traps of the organization. We are also showing utmost sensitivity to prevent the scenes that FETO exploited in the past from happening again."