Turkey's Parliament opened its new session today, Sunday, following the summer recess, and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged political forces to draft a new constitution for the country. Erdogan stated that terrorists have failed today and will always fail to achieve their goals, noting that major powers have imposed terrorist organizations on Turkey which "we managed to eliminate." He emphasized that "our country has eliminated major threats related to terrorism both domestically and abroad, and terrorist organizations are breathing their last because we are constantly hitting them."
He added, "We will not allow the Gülen organization to return, nor any similar terrorist organizations; just as our citizens came out unarmed and thwarted the coup, they will come out and defeat terrorism." This comes just hours after an armed attack on one of the gates of the Security Directorate of Turkey's Interior Ministry in the Kızılay area of Ankara.
In a speech, Erdogan stated that the Turkish government successfully manages the state by global standards, placing the country among major nations, stressing that he is confident in the Turkish people's trust in their parliament despite betrayals and narrow calculations. He also mentioned, "The only legacy we will pass on to future generations is this parliament with its diversity and democratic experience, emphasizing the need to rid ourselves of the legacy of coups, and every Turkish citizen will find themselves in the new constitution that we aspire to draft."
The Turkish president called on all political forces and groups to participate in drafting a new constitution for the country, noting that the Turkish constitution has been amended more than 20 times, making it unwieldy. He remarked, "Opposition parties complained about the coup-era constitution, but they did not accept our participation in drafting a new one." Erdogan confirmed that he is speaking about a comprehensive and inclusive civil constitution that comes through consensus and dialogue, and that is worthy of Turkey’s centennial.
He remarked that the European Union's behavior toward Turkey is unfair, "not fulfilling its promises despite our commitment to our pledges," pointing out that it treats Turkey "in a biased manner rather than neutrally, and we will no longer wait at its door."
