PM lashes out at ‘black propaganda' sources

Speaking in his ancestral hometown of Rize yesterday as part of his visit to Black Sea-area cities, Erdoğan said Turkey was defending the righteous in the case of Israel and that it would not cease to do so regardless of any threats it might receive from international media and some domestic newspapers. He said a black propaganda campaign against Turkey was going on, supported by the international media and pro-status-quo diplomats and newspapers in Turkey, suggesting that Turkey was changing its foreign policy course, drifting away from the West. He said nobody could toy with Turkey's pride. “They know about our sincere efforts to bring peace. We never allow this nation to be ashamed of anything, and we never will be [ashamed].” He said that foreign policy, democratization and the government's Kurdish initiative were all tied to the economy, saying his critics were pro-status-quo powers who wanted to doom Turkey to poverty.

Recalling that under his government Turkey's export volume had risen to $132 billion from $32 billion, Erdoğan asserted that this would not have been possible without the government's proactive foreign policy.

He noted also that Turkey’s tourism revenues had risen from $8.5 billion annually to a yearly $22 billion. “Would this be possible if we hadn’t waived visa requirements and pursued our policy of zero problems with our neighbors?” he asked. Without strengthening democracy, Turkey’s economy cannot grow, Erdoğan said, accusing some segments of society of hindering Turkish development.

Erdoğan criticized the opposition for challenging government-led reforms at the Constitutional Court, saying: “If they could, they would roll up 11,000 double-lane roads [built by the AK Party government] and take them to the Constitutional Court. If they could, they would put rollers beneath the 430,000 Housing Development Administration of Turkey (TOKİ) houses and take them to the Constitutional Court.”

During his Black Sea visit Erdoğan also challenged the European Union, whose membership negotiations with Turkey have been stalled due to a number of political setbacks, saying the bloc should accept Turkey as a full member if it is not a Christian club.

Speaking in Trabzon, where he was visiting on Saturday to attend a graduation ceremony at Karadeniz Technical University (KTÜ), which granted the prime minister an honorary doctorate, Erdoğan denied claims that Turkey’s foreign policy axis was shifting toward the East.

“Those who are speaking about a shift of axis, if they are not ill-intentioned, are those who have failed to understand Turkey’s new role and its multifaceted foreign policy. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that this government was the one that launched membership talks with the EU. When did we apply for EU membership? In 1959, when it was called the European Economic Community [EEC]. Our first official application was made in 1963.

There has been no other country as unfortunate as we since that day. They have engaged us for 50 years. And they still are [engaging us], let me tell you that. We are struggling; we are making strenuous efforts. We set up a ministry solely for this purpose. You know one of our state ministers is our chief negotiator; he is traveling to EU member countries from border to border. They are stalling on us, despite all this.”

He said that the behind-the-scenes reason was obvious to all, noting he had made this observation during private conversations with some European ministers he is on good terms with. “We know this, but we do not think it right to voice this. I tell them openly: If you are not a Christian club, you are obliged to accept Turkey. For the only thing that can express that you are not a Christian club is having Turkey there, as a country with a Muslim public. Today, we are a country that is compatible with the EU acquis in a way that cannot even be compared to the [compatibility of the] last 10 countries accepted. You cannot compare anything we have to them, not in terms of fundamental rights and freedoms nor in terms of development. We know these countries. We go there, we see what there is there -- and it is all out in the open. We look at the EU acquis; that is also out in the open. But these [countries] are far behind, none of them comparable to Turkey. They have virtual budgets. Their decision is political.”