19.06.2026 09:41
At the 29th anniversary program of the D8, organized under the leadership of the Felicity Party, former President Gül, Future Party Chairman Davutoğlu, DEVA Party Chairman Babacan, Felicity Party Chairman Arıkan, and New Welfare Party Chairman Erbakan came together. The 11th President Abdullah Gül and the political party leaders emphasized that the D8 should transform into a political and moral stance beyond economic cooperation.
Under the leadership of the Felicity Party, a program was held regarding the 29th anniversary of the Developing 8 (D8) Economic Cooperation Organization. Within the scope of the summit, the 11th President Abdullah Gül, Future Party Chairman Ahmet Davutoğlu, DEVA Party Chairman Ali Babacan, Felicity Party Chairman Mahmut Arıkan, and New Welfare Party Chairman Fatih Erbakan posed together. The program was attended by Head of the Iranian Delegation Manouchehr Mottaki, D8 Secretary General Sohail Mahmood, former Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Mahmoud Moussa, Head of the Palestine-Turkey Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group Mazen Alhasasneh, and political party representatives.
ABDULLAH GÜL SUPPORTS THE IRAN-US AGREEMENT
In his speech at the program held at Çırağan Palace, 11th President Abdullah Gül stated that major events have taken place in the world over the last 30 years, and that the main issue in every period has been Palestine.
Gül said, "I am pleased to see that bilateral relations among D8 countries have developed and strengthened in every aspect, and all the difficult days are behind us. Currently, all leaders and those governing the countries, from Turkey to Egypt and from Indonesia to Pakistan, are aware of this. The future will be much better."
Stating that the agreement between Iran and the US is gratifying, Gül congratulated the Iranian people.
ARIKAN: D8 MUST TRANSFORM INTO A POLITICAL IDENTITY
Felicity Party Chairman Mahmut Arıkan stated that the D8 is not a superficial structure like today's international organizations that only serves the interests of Zionism, but a great civilizational call that challenges the global order.
Pointing out that the D8 is a strategic organization extending from Asia to Africa and from Africa to Europe, Arıkan continued as follows:
"It lies on energy production areas and transport and transit routes. It has a very important geostrategic position from the Istanbul Strait to Çanakkale, from the Suez Canal to the Gulf of Aden, and from the Strait of Hormuz to the Caspian Sea. It hosts all kinds of underground and aboveground riches, especially oil and natural gas. But most importantly, it is the human resource it possesses. D8 countries have tremendous power with a population exceeding 1 billion, an economy approaching 5 trillion dollars, and a geography covering more than 7.5 million square kilometers. We must stop seeing the D8 merely as an economic cooperation platform and transform this great structure into a political identity, a moral stance, and a global proposal for 'justice.'"
DAVUTOĞLU: WE ARE NOT A FLANK COUNTRY, BUT A CENTRAL COUNTRY
In his speech, Future Party Chairman Ahmet Davutoğlu explained the conditions under which the D8 was born.
Davutoğlu stated that the D8 did not emerge as a passive project, but as a rebellion against the process that began with the Cold War and World War II. "Until the D8 project was announced, Turkey was seen as a flank country of NATO during the Cold War period. That is, it was a passive country with a strong army that would block the Soviet Union to protect NATO, provide base facilities for NATO's regional interventions, but without its own strategic mindset and defense industry. We rebelled against that back then." he said.
Davutoğlu added, "Not a flank country, but a central country. Now look at the map of the D8; you will see Turkey's central position. Ours was a rebellion, a rebellion against those who assigned a passive role to Turkey."
BABACAN: D8 REPRESENTS GREAT POTENTIAL
DEVA Party Chairman Ali Babacan stated that the D8 was established in 1997 to answer a very fundamental question.
Babacan said, "When we look at D8 countries, with their population, economic size, trade connections with each other and the world, and the average age of the population—a young population—they actually represent a huge potential."
ERBAKAN: D8 IS THE CORE OF A JUST WORLD
New Welfare Party Chairman Fatih Erbakan said, "Under the leadership of our late leader Prof. Dr. Necmettin Erbakan, exactly 29 years ago on June 15, 1997, the D8 was established to form the core of a just world."
Stating that the D8 was greeted with great joy and enthusiasm in the Islamic world, Erbakan noted:
"The D8 community, consisting of 8 member countries, today constitutes approximately 1.5 billion of the world's population of 8 billion, i.e., 18 percent. The surface area of these 8 countries is 7.5 million square kilometers. They hold 12 percent of the world's proven oil reserves. They hold 22 percent of the world's proven natural gas reserves. They also contain the majority of strategic mineral reserves such as boron, chromium, and thorium. They provide the majority of cotton exports. They cover a vast region at the center of the world. The control of the seas and straits where two-thirds of world maritime trade takes place is in the hands of these 8 countries."
The program was attended by Head of the Iranian Delegation Manouchehr Mottaki, D8 Secretary General Sohail Mahmood, former Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Mahmoud Moussa, Head of the Palestine-Turkey Inter-Parliamentary Friendship Group Mazen Alhasasneh, Felicity Party Deputy Chairman Sabri Tekir, and political party representatives.