“We want our region to be a geography of peace”
Addressing the 4th Antalya Diplomacy Forum, President Erdoğan said: “We want our region, which is as old as humanity itself, to be a geography of civilization, security, peace and serenity, in keeping with its deep-rooted history. We want to see a region where reconciliation prevails over conflicts; solidarity over fragmentation; and prosperity and stability over bloodshed, tears, sufferings and tensions. This is the world we wish to live in and leave to our children.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a speech at the 4th Antalya Diplomacy Forum, themed ‘Reclaiming Diplomacy in a Fragmented World’.
“We are not a country located in a comfortable geography away from problems. We live in a country which is as strategically important as it is prone to crises. This has always been the case throughout history. Our environment has never been free from occupation attempts, the Crusades, imperial schemes, or efforts to incite tensions and instabilities. Our geography has been the region most affected and most damaged by the destructive competition between great powers extending from the World War I to the Cold War. Today as well, many issues, wars, crises and tensions that dominate the internatinal political agenda unfold in our surrounding geograhy. I am proud to state that we are not merely inhabitants of this geography; we are also its rightful owners. We have been here for a thousand years, and inshallah, we will remain here for many more centuries to come. We want our region, which is as old as humanity itself, to be a geography of civilization, security, peace and serenity, in keeping with its deep-rooted history. We want to see a region where reconciliation prevails over conflicts; solidarity over fragmentation; and prosperity and stability over bloodshed, tears, sufferings and tensions. This is the world we wish to live in and leave to our children. This, we of course know, is not easy to achieve. We are well aware that peace takes more effort than war. Yet, we have always chosen the difficult one over the easy one and, today as well, we opt for the difficult one. In this spirit, just as we make efforts for lasting peace and stability in our surrounding geography such as Ukraine, Syria and Gaza, we are also taking responsibility through initiatives like mediation and facilitation in Arica and Asia. By fostering good relations with our neighbors, by expanding the means for cooperation and trade, and also by building bridges of dialogue between conflicting parties, we are striving to establish a belt of peace and security around our country,” President Erdoğan said.
