21.10.2026 14:52
Felicity Party Chairman Mahmut Arıkan said that the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement increased his concerns, not his hopes, for the future of the region. DEVA Party Chairman Ali Babacan also stated that the agreement should be expanded to include Egypt and Iran, and announced that they cannot support the agreement without receiving answers to their questions.
Opposition leaders Mahmut Arıkan and Ali Babacan raised their reservations about the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement. While Arıkan described the agreement as an “obligation agreement,” Babacan called for the process to be conducted transparently.
ARIKAN: NEW CONFLICT LINES MUST NOT BE OPENED IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD Speaking at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) group meeting of the New Path Party, Felicity Party Chairman Mahmut Arıkan said that bringing Islamic countries together in every field is their greatest goal. Warning that no step should be taken that would open new conflict lines and fronts in the Islamic world or produce new tensions and fractures, Arıkan emphasized that the region should prioritize forming a front against Zionism, not against one another.
Felicity Party Chairman Mahmut Arıkan “NO STAIN MUST BE CAST ON THE BROTHERHOOD THAT MECCA REPRESENTS” Describing the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement as “an agreement of obligation, not cooperation,” Arıkan said, “When we evaluate it together with current regional developments, this agreement increases our concern, not our hope, for the future of our geography. Let it be well known that an agreement bearing Mecca’s name must not cast a stain on the brotherhood that Mecca represents.”
“CHANGING A BADGE DOES NOT CHANGE INFRASTRUCTURE” Recalling the flood disasters in Istanbul caused by heavy rain, Arıkan argued that the calculation being made was not about which stream would be rehabilitated, but about which mayor would be transferred. Saying that changing a mayor’s badge cannot change a city’s infrastructure, Arıkan called for the state’s and the nation’s resources to be mobilized to strengthen infrastructure, complete urban transformation, and keep people alive.
LIKENING THE FUND REGULATION TO “MOSQUITO HUNTING” Also touching on the debates over the Draft Law on Certain Investment Funds Decided to Be Liquidated, Arıkan claimed that “instead of draining the swamp, an attempt is being made to hunt mosquitoes.” Stating that the draft does not provide assurance for the victims’ money, Arıkan criticized the granting of broad powers to the Capital Markets Board (SPK) regarding the liquidation, valuation, and sale of funds and payments to investors.
“YOU IMMEDIATELY SWEPT THE LIST UNDER THE RUG” Demanding that all legs of the structure targeting the nation’s savings be exposed, especially its political leg, Arıkan said:
“In the fund swindle, you billed journalists, you billed bureaucrats, you billed companies, you billed institutions, you even billed the victims, but when it came to the political leg, you immediately swept the list under the rug. You will reveal the political leg of this affair, the House of Lords, and you will open the way for those responsible to be tried. Since you are in control, since you are aware of everything, the responsibility is also yours.”
In his assessments regarding the 2027 budget and sugar beet purchase prices, Arıkan also criticized the government’s economic and agricultural policies.
BABACAN: THE BUDGET IS THE PICTURE OF A WEALTH TRANSFER FROM THE POOR TO THE RICH DEVA Party Chairman Ali Babacan offered his condolences to those who lost their lives in the flood disaster in Istanbul and other provinces and called for the wounds of citizens and shopkeepers to be healed as soon as possible.
Recalling that the Draft Law on the 2027 Central Government Budget had been submitted to Parliament, Babacan said the budget was “nothing but a document that clearly shows on whom the bills for the wrong economic policies are being stuck.” Claiming that the budget proposal prioritizes interest rather than production and honest labor, Babacan said, “This budget is the picture of a great income and wealth transfer in Turkey. A very great income and wealth transfer has been made and is being made, and this transfer is being made from the poor to the rich.”
DEVA Party Chairman Ali Babacan “TRUST CANNOT BE BUILT UNLESS THEY ARE HIT WITH THE HEAVIEST PENALTIES” Also touching on investigations into transactions in the capital market, Babacan said, “Unless those who do this are hit with the heaviest penalties, you cannot build trust. If you say, return the money and get away with it, you will encourage future frauds.”
Arguing that the government has handled the issue with an attitude far from transparency, accountability, sincerity, and honesty, Babacan said, “The work is proceeding within a framework aimed at removing the political bill as soon as possible, before solving the problem and protecting citizens.”
“WE CANNOT SUPPORT IT WITHOUT GETTING ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS” Also sharing his views on the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, Babacan called for it to be clearly set out under what conditions, to whom, and how Turkey would provide military aid, how the deployment of the armed forces would be decided, and how Parliament’s constitutional powers would be used.
Demanding that the process be conducted transparently, Babacan said, “Turkey must never lose its quality as a principled and reliable mediator. If there is a split among Islamic countries, Turkey must not take sides in that split.”
Stating that they did not find it right for the agreement to remain limited to 3 countries, Babacan said:
“This agreement must be expanded, starting with Egypt, and even though we are now in a war environment, with Iran immediately after that. If you say this is a true cooperation, that can only happen through a larger alliance of power that includes Egypt and Iran and other countries as well. We cannot support this agreement without getting answers to these questions.”