Speaking after the Presidential Cabinet Meeting, President Erdoğan announced new measures against COVID-19 and said: “We will enforce a full lockdown starting from 19:00 on Thursday, April 29, 2021 until 05:00 on Monday, May 17, 2021.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addressed the nation following the Presidential Cabinet Meeting at the Presidential Complex.
“WE WILL NOT TOLERATE THE MENTALITY THAT SEEKS TO DOOM CYPRUS TO A DEADLOCK”
“We hosted President Ersin Tatar of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus prior to the cabinet meeting today. During our meeting with Mr. Tatar, we discussed bilateral cooperation as well as the UN five-plus-one meeting to be held tomorrow in Geneva. Mr. Tatar, with the support he receives from the Turkish Cypriot people, will put forward the two-state solution based on sovereign equality. As Turkey, we will fully support this vision.
We will not tolerate the mentality that seeks to doom Cyprus to a deadlock and to discourage our Turkish Cypriot brothers and sisters through embargoes. Regardless of the results of the meeting, we will continue to stand with our Turkish Cypriot brothers and sisters.
As you know, the Turkish Armed Forces have recently launched a comprehensive operation against the hotbeds of the PKK-YPG terrorist organization in Northern Iraq with its land and air units. Starting from 2015, Turkey has initiated a new concept in its fight against the terrorist attacks if faces from inside and outside its borders.
“WE CARRIED OUT OPERATIONS WHEREBY WE DEALT HEAVY BLOWS TO TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS”
We announced it to the whole world that we would follow a strategy of finding and eliminating terrorist organizations right in their caves rather than waiting them until they come to our doorstep and stage attacks. Accordingly, we carried out operations both at home and beyond our borders whereby we dealt the heaviest blows they had ever seen in their entire history. Our latest operations, called Claw-Lightning and Claw-Thunderbolt, serve this goal. I congratulate every soldier partaking in the operations and wish them victory in their endeavors.
Connecting with the command center Saturday, we expressed to our soldiers our success wishes and our determination in the fight against terror. Just as we completely freed our Iraqi and Syrian borders from the harassments of terrorist organizations, we will definitely not allow the formation of any terrorist formations beyond our borders, either Even though there are some who still cannot understand our sensitivity and determination on this issue, we will make everyone understand the facts through the struggle we are waging both in the field and on the table.
We have two martyrs in the meantime upon whom I wish Allah’s mercy. May they rest in peace! We have also soldiers who have been wounded, but not in serious condition. I pray to my Lord for their speedy recovery.
I believe those who seek a terrorist formation in Syria right beside our borders will realize this fact sooner or later. Without caring who says what and who walks with whom, we will continue to do whatever it takes for the survival of our country and nation. May Allah be with Turkey and the Turkish Armed Forces, the apple of its eye, with our heroic soldiers!
“US PRESIDENT MADE REMARKS THAT ARE UNJUST AND CONTRARY TO THE FACTS”
My august nation, US President Biden, in a message on April 24, made remarks that are groundless, unjust and contrary to the facts. These remarks, which lack any historical and lawful base, have significantly saddened us just like every member of our nation. We think that the remarks in the statement were made under the pressure of radical Armenian circles and anti-Turkey groups. This situation, however, doesn’t eliminate the destructive impacts which the picture that emerged had on the bilateral relations between the two countries.
As Turkey, we by no means consider it to be human that the sufferings experienced in the past are made to compete against one another. However, if such a way is to be resorted to, let me remind that we are the sole country and nation that will come with a clear conscience and peaceful heart out of such a competition. All the circles — particularly America and Europe — which level genocide accusations at us, would be ashamed of themselves in case of such a comparison.
“WE CAN FIND NUMEROUS INCIDENTS IN THE US AND EUROPEAN HISTORY THAT CAN BE CHARACTERIZED AS GENOCIDE”
I would like to remind once again the losses we suffered in the Balkans and the Caucasus which resulted in 5 million deaths and 5 million displacements. The losses, which occurred during relocation and resettlement of the Armenians by the Ottomans in 1915, should be assessed in the context of this climate. If the Armenian losses are to be characterized as genocide, all the incidents of the era, particularly the ones I mentioned, must be characterized so, as well. If we go back or forward in time, we can find numerous incidents in the US and European history that can be characterized as genocide.
Many topics from the Indians to the black people, from the incidents in Dresden, Germany to the atomic bombs dropped in Japanese cities, especially from Vietnam to Iraq can be opened to debate. Numerous communities across the world from South America to Africa and East Asia still feel the pain of the oppression they experienced in their hearts.
The painful images that emerged in our lands during the WWI is just a fragment of the problems everyone experienced during the same period without exception. The concept of genocide and its relevant processes belong to 1948 and afterwards without the possibility of retroaction. Let me underline that to be able to voice such an accusation, there must be concrete evidences, on which historians agree, and court verdicts based on them. There is no concrete evidence, supporting the Armenian allegations, and no verdict by an international court.
Turkey’s proposal to establish a joint history commission and open the archives primarily aims to find an accurate historical basis for the issue. Since we are sure of ourselves, we are open to discussions, debates, researches and assessments in all their kinds. We do not close our archives even to researchers, who are known to be biased against us. Come and see.
The US and European countries stand with the nonsense, slanders and lies, spread by those who refrain from talking based on historical archive documents. They are not only displaying animosity towards us, but also betraying science. The injustices and attacks against respectable historians just because they do not give credit to Armenian lies and do pursue the truth, criminalizing by law stating that there is no genocide are literally examples of strange behaviors.
“WE WILL CRUSH THE TRAP, SET UP THROUGH PKK/YPG IN SYRIA”
Mr. Biden, we have not and will not forget the ASALA terrorist organization’s attacks against unarmed public servants, our diplomats in 1970s. We know very well how the murderers, who killed our diplomats in despicable attacks, were protected and released from prison.
We are of course aware that dreams, similar to the ones in the past century, are being tried to be realized for the last 40 years through the PKK terrorist organization from the point the Armenian organizations left off. Just as we have foiled all the plots against us, rest assured that we will crush the trap, set up through PKK within our borders and through PKK/YPG in Syria.
My glorious nation; in light of these facts, I hope the US will backtrack as soon as possible on the wrong step she has taken. Such accusations as genocide are too delicate to be made matters of politics. Presidents, parliaments making judgements on such issues by setting aside the discipline of history would serve nothing other than making things more complicated. We believe history is a reference point which should be consulted to build a nicer future, not to cause new animosities or conflicts. The ongoing debates do not benefit the Armenian community in any way. On the contrary, such steps produce new problems.
“WE HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY”
We have no problem with the Armenian community. We have lived together with these people for a thousand years. We continue to live in peace with some of them. We would like to build relations with Armenia based on good neighborliness regardless of the way it was established. To this end, we have taken steps, in which we always made sacrifices, in the past 16 years. However, our steps unfortunately went unreciprocated sincerely.
We believe ground for cooperation emerged once again following the resolution of the Karabakh issue. The US President’s remarks on April 24 means nothing beyond hindering this process as well as our bilateral relations. The sun will not stop rising just because they say so. The light of truth will not give up shining just because they say so. For long years, we have had close relations with the US based on reliable alliance.
Their support to FETO and PKK/PYD, which are Turkey’s redlines, their embargo, such incidents as the S-400s, for which they are responsible, are harming our relations of model partnership. The April 24 statement topped of the recent developments and the Turkish-American relations have fallen way below this level.
With the strength we derive from our national unity and solidarity, our historical heritage, geographical advantages and unparalleled potential, we will focus on our own goals and continue to march forward regardless of the circumstances.
We are tired of the persistent efforts to make us back down on matters, about which we are well-establishedly right. Those, who think they can steer us from our path by doing so, should understand that they are wrong.
With all our sincerity, we as Turkey want to walk and work with the US and the EU under equal and fair conditions. In the restructuring process of the global political and economic system, we believe our cooperation is more important and to everyone’s benefit.
“WE STAND READY TO TALK WITH EVERYONE ON EVERY GROUND”
All we want is for our country not to be subjected to unjust, unfair and double-standard practices, behaviors and decisions, taken under the influence of marginal groups. We stand ready to talk, reach an agreement and cooperate with everyone on every ground as long as our stance as a country which values its freedom and future above all else is respected.
I believe we will discuss all these matters face to face with President Biden of the US during our meeting in June and open the doors to a new era. I would like to remind Mr. Biden that we were not strangers. We had distinct relations. He even showed the courtesy of visiting me at my home during my illness.
We are two significant allies within NATO. How can you choose the Armenian lobby, which has nothing to do with NATO, over Turkey? We, with our counterpart, should set aside the matters, poisoning our bilateral relations, and evaluate what kinds of steps we will take for the future. Otherwise, we will have no choice but to put into effect the practices required by the new level our relations descended to following the April 24 statement.
I had a phone call with my brother Aliyev, President of Azerbaijan regarding the implementation of the agreement with Armenia and joint steps to be taken in line with the recent developments. You know we gave the best answer to those, who had imposed impasse as a solution for years, with Azerbaijan in Karabakh. We will elaborate the steps we will take in this regard in the coming days.
WHEN CASE AND DEATH NUMBERS RISE, IT BECOMES INEVITABLE TO HEIGHTEN RESTRICTIVE MEASURES”
Noting that new measures against the COVID-19 pandemic was discussed during the meeting, President Erdoğan said: “When case and death numbers rise, it becomes inevitable to heighten restrictive measures.”
“We must reduce the number of cases to below 5 thousand. Otherwise, it will be inevitable for us to face a heavy toll in all areas from tourism to trade and education. In order to achieve our aimed level of relief, it is of importance that we make some more sacrifices together in the days ahead,” President Erdoğan underlined.
“We will enforce a full lockdown starting from 19:00 on Thursday, April 29, 2021 until 05:00 on Monday, May 17, 2021,” President Erdoğan said.
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