16.05.2026 22:00
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, attending the "Youth Festival Program" organized by AK Party Youth Branches at Kocaeli Stadium, delivered important messages to the youth. Stating that "Our defense industry is rising on the shoulders of the TEKNOFEST generation," President Erdoğan said, "The world looks on with envy." President Erdoğan also called out, "Do not allow those who want to use you for their dirty purposes."
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke at the 'Youth Festival' program organized by the AK Party Youth Branches at Turka Kocaeli Stadium.
Erdogan's statements are as follows:
"I THANK EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU"
“I welcome all our guests from friendly and brotherly countries, along with our youth from every corner of Turkey who added color to our festival. Welcome, may you bring joy.
On your behalf, I lovingly salute Turkey’s bright faces, all the youth who are the apple of this great nation’s eye, the young hearts who will be the architects of the Century of Turkey.
Likewise, I send my greetings to the young members of the Turkish diaspora in Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Africa, who proudly wave our flag across the four corners of the earth and stand as the brightest symbol of our nation’s presence abroad through their achievements.
I convey my salutations from here to all my young brothers and sisters who embroider our heartland and cultural geography, whose prayers, support, and hearts are with us.
For your love and affection that transcends cities, countries, and continents; for your boundless friendship and brotherhood; for this enthusiasm you show here today spilling from stadiums; for this unique scene of unity and solidarity, I thank each and every one of you.
"I AM THRILLED TO BE WITH YOU, OUR YOUTH"
I am greatly excited to be with you, our youth. Today, the heart of all 81 provinces beats here. The pulse of our nation and civilization beats here. The dawn of the great and powerful Turkey we dream of beats here.
For a full thousand years, the blessed souls of our martyrs who shed their holy blood for the call to prayer, the flag, the homeland, and the nation; of our veterans, symbols of courage who paid the price for our independence and future; of all our ancestors from Alp Arslan to Kilij Arslan I, from Fatih Sultan Mehmed to Yavuz Sultan Selim, from Saladin to Abdulhamid II—may they now, God willing, be gladdened and remembered through your upright stance and radiant hope.
As pioneering soldiers of the TEKNOFEST generation, you today attain the glad tidings of our late teacher Nurettin Topçu: 'The spirit of Fatih, standing right between the Omars and the Akifs, truly continues in our bodies.' We feel this.
"I SEE A DETERMINED YOUTH CARRYING TURKEY'S FUTURE WITH ALL THEIR MIGHT"
Right now, before me, I see a determined youth carrying the accumulation of the past into the present, shouldering Turkey's future with all their strength. Right now, before me, I see a visionary youth speaking new words to the world, drawing attention, voicing truth and righteousness.
I feel a compassionate youth who, from Gaza to Sudan, from Somalia to Yemen, feel the sorrow of the oppressed, the victim, and their tearful brothers in the deepest corners of their hearts.
Right now, before me, I see a youth who rushed to help their nation on the night of the earthquake, stayed awake through the night in the fire zone, and shared the nation's troubles. Right now, before me, I see a conscientious youth, a conscious youth, a youth possessing faith, understanding, insight, and discernment.
The spirit of blessed cities will awaken. The spirits of Bursa, Istanbul, Konya, Diyarbakir, Erzurum, Damascus, Baghdad, Samarkand, Mecca, Medina, and along with them, Cairo and Islamabad will revive.
I see before me those children who will raise these cities, awaken the sleeping ones. Praise be to God who has granted us to walk the path with this youth, whose passion is AK.
May God always keep your path and fortune open. Youth is about breaking down the walls of the heart. Youth is dream, excitement, dynamism. Society draws its energy from the youth. The most valuable link in the chain extending from the individual to the family, from family to the nation, from nation to the state, is the youth.
When we glance at our history, we can clearly see this truth. Whenever the youth raised in the bosom of this nation have stepped up, the family has strengthened, and the state has achieved its true mission. You see this in Fatih, who conquered not just Istanbul but hearts as well. It is always the youth who have raised the banner of independence by taking on the toughest responsibilities at the sharpest turns. You see this spirit at Malazgirt, at Gallipoli, in the War of Independence, and in repelling the betrayal of July 15.
"WE LIVED THROUGH DAYS WHEN THE YOUTH'S FUTURE WAS DARKENED"
Whenever the youth were divided among themselves, fell into traps, succumbed to provocations, and drifted from their values, the most painful processes of our history occurred.
They turned the youth of this country against each other. We lived through days when people were deprived of their right to education and work, forced to resign, and had their future darkened just because of their headscarf, beard, or attire.
As the AK Party, from the very first day we took on the responsibility of governing the country, we have strived for Turkey to reach its deserved place.
The days when having a certain dress style or worldview was a prerequisite for studying at university or serving in the public sector are now behind us. Without distinguishing between rich and poor, urban and rural, eastern and western, we fully established equality of opportunity among the children of this country. And of course, we made the greatest investment in our youth. By lowering the voting age to 18, we clearly demonstrated the trust we have in our youth. By moving politics away from narrow cadre politics, we opened the way for our youth in culture, arts, politics, and sports.
"WE INCREASED THE BUDGET ALLOCATED TO HIGHER EDUCATION TO 651 BILLION LIRAS"
For 23 years, we allocated the lion's share of all budgets to education. In 2002, the budget allocated to higher education was only 2.5 billion liras; we increased it to 651 billion liras. In the same period, we raised the number of universities from 76 to 200. We increased the bed capacity in our dormitories from 182,000 to 1 million. We increased the total scholarship amount and the number of students receiving scholarships; we provide scholarships or loans to every student who applies.