President Erdoğan's first comment on the Israel-Iran ceasefire: "We welcome it with satisfaction."

24.06.2025 14:10

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan expressed his satisfaction with the ceasefire between Israel and Iran. Erdoğan stated, "We welcome the news that a consensus has been reached on a ceasefire between the parties, which came late last night. We invite all parties to fully adhere to the ceasefire."

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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is making statements before his trip to the NATO Summit.

In a statement made before his departure to the Netherlands to attend the "NATO Heads of State and Government Summit," President Erdoğan stated that they do not find it right to impose barriers to trade in defense products among allies, saying, "These barriers and restrictions need to be lifted as soon as possible, without any conditions or exceptions."

President Erdoğan expressed that steps to strengthen the alliance's deterrence and defense will be evaluated at the summit, and new targets will be set for increasing defense spending among allies.

Emphasizing Turkey's role within NATO, Erdoğan said, "As Turkey, we particularly advocate for fair burden sharing and the strengthening of European security. We are an ally that commands and manages the second largest land army in NATO. While continuously improving our country's defense capabilities, we also contribute to the alliance's deterrence."

"WE DO NOT FIND IT RIGHT TO IMPOSE BARRIERS"

Stating that they attach importance to strengthening the defense industry across the alliance, Erdoğan continued:

While aiming for a stronger defense and a more effective army, we do not find it right to impose barriers to trade in defense products among allies. These barriers and restrictions need to be lifted as soon as possible, without any conditions or exceptions. In this context, we are closely following the European Union's recent initiatives in the field of defense and security. Our country, which contributes more to European security than the total of many members, should be included in the union's defense initiatives accordingly. The inclusion of the Turkish defense sector in the union's defense mechanisms and projects will benefit all of Europe. In this regard, we are primarily in close consultation with allies that are not members of the union, like us. We plan to address measures that support the European pillar of the alliance. At the summit, we will also draw attention to what the alliance needs to do in the field of combating terrorism as the ally that has contributed the most to the concept of combating terrorism within the alliance with a foresighted approach years ago.

Efforts to achieve a just resolution to the war in Ukraine are among the summit's agenda items. Allies will also meet with Ukrainian President Zelensky. We will explain our efforts to end the war through diplomacy without compromising our responsibilities to the alliance. Recently, after a three-year hiatus, we brought the parties together in Istanbul. We facilitated the decisions and implementation regarding the exchange of prisoners and corpses. We are planning new steps for the continuation of the Istanbul process.

Both at the summit and in our bilateral meetings, we will also draw attention to the massacres of the Palestinian people by the Netanyahu government. We will emphasize that the occupation, invasion, and destruction policies that have been ongoing for 21 months must come to an end as soon as possible.

"WE WELCOME THE CEASEFIRE"

On the other hand, as you know, tensions in our region have escalated since June 13. From the very beginning of the process that started with Israel's attacks on Iran, we have had initiatives based on negotiations. We have met with many leaders, including Mr. Trump and Mr. Pezeshkian. We brought together the Foreign Ministers of the member countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation in Istanbul. We are closely following developments after the statements made by American President Trump yesterday. We appreciate and sincerely support any efforts that will establish a ceasefire in the region and pave the way for lasting peace. Indeed, we welcome the news that a consensus has been reached for a ceasefire between the parties late last night. We invite all parties to fully comply with the ceasefire.

I have stated before that our region cannot bear the burden of a war whose effects will be felt worldwide. Allowing diplomacy a chance to resolve conflicts and withdrawing hands from the trigger will be the most correct, beneficial, and rational stance. As Turkey, we will steadfastly maintain our principled stance that prioritizes diplomacy while respecting international law.

We want to host the NATO summit in Turkey in 2026. On the margins of the summit, we will hold bilateral meetings with our allies and leaders from alliance partners. We hope that the decisions we will make at the summit will lead to good outcomes, and I thank you.