NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg: Turkey’s role is critical

Speaking at the 68th General Assembly of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO-PA), held in Madrid, Spain, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg condemned the “brutal terrorist attack” in Istanbul last week.

Stoltenberg, to a question posed by Osman Askin Bak, Chairman of the Turkish Group of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and AK Party Deputy for Rize, at the General Assembly regarding the extension of the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement, said, “Turkey and President Erdogan are very key and important in the extension of the grain corridor agreement and in prisoner exchanges. “He played an important role. Turkey is an important and influential member of NATO. Turkey is also a very strong NATO country in the fight against terrorism. There was a brutal terrorist attack in Istanbul last week. We condemn that too.” gave the answer.

Touching on the NATO membership processes of Finland and Sweden, Stoltenberg said, “It is time to end the process of ratifying Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership in the country’s parliaments. These countries will continue to work closely with Turkey in their fight against terrorism in the future. Finland and Sweden, NATO. He fulfilled the requirements of the memorandum signed with Turkey during the membership process to Turkey. This process must now be completed.” said.

Emphasizing that Finland and Sweden’s membership processes to NATO have been running very quickly since the moment of application, Stoltenberg continued as follows:

“The membership process of these two countries has been at an unprecedented pace in the history of NATO. Finland and Sweden are in a much different position right now. The USA and the UK have given guarantees to these countries. In case of any attack on Finland or Sweden by Russia, NATO will be It is unthinkable not to act. They have all kinds of guarantees. Of course, I want the parliamentary approval processes to be completed now, but let’s not forget that a very fast process has been run so far.”

Call for unity in support of Ukraine

Stoltenberg, to the parliamentarians of NATO member countries, “I want you all to be united in support of Ukraine.” “As NATO, we have decided to increase our support for Ukraine in 2022. The Madrid Summit was an important transition period for NATO. The New Strategic Concept, in which Russia was removed from the strategic partnership and defined as a threat, was accepted and Finland and Sweden He was invited to join NATO.” he said.

NATO Secretary General said, “(Russian President Vladimir) Putin made two strategic mistakes in his invasion of Ukraine in February. He did not understand the value of the Ukrainians and did not take into account that NATO would support him with full unity. Russia is suffering quite a lot at the moment.” said.

Stating that they are aware that the war will last a very long time and they expect NATO members to be prepared to support Ukraine for a long time, Stoltenberg said, “We are ready to pay the price for this. As the NATO alliance, we pay a material price, but they pay a much greater price with their blood.”

“The world has become more dangerous and more fragile.” Stoltenberg said to NATO member countries, “It is necessary to be careful about energy dependence. China has been making its presence felt in strategic places more recently. China is a country that needs attention.” used the phrase.

Spanish PM Sanchez’s call to Putin

In his speech, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said, “We are in a great transition period for NATO. NATO has shown its necessity, determination and unity in the face of this challenge, encouraged by Russian President Putin and threatening our security and stability.” said.

Sanchez, “I want to send a message to Putin from here. Leave Ukraine alone. Do not touch its national sovereignty, protect its territorial integrity. As NATO members, we will fight together until these are achieved.” he said.

Award to the Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Stefanishyna from NATO-PA

Meanwhile, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly presented its “Women for Peace and Security” award this year to Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna.

17 MPs from Turkey participated

While about 100 parliamentarians from 269 parliamentarians and 11 joint delegations and 8 observer parliamentary delegations from 30 alliance member countries participated in NATO-PA, Turkey was welcomed by Osman Aşkın Bak, the Chairman of the Turkish Group of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, 7 from the AK Party, 7 from the CHP. 4 MPs from the HDP, 2 from the MHP and 1 from the IYI Party.

At the three-day meetings in Madrid, support for Ukraine in the war against Russia was a priority. In addition, the implementation of the New Strategic Concept decisions taken at the NATO Summit held in Madrid on June 28-30, NATO’s defense and deterrence efforts, response to Russia’s threats, cyber security, the effects of climate change on security, Afghanistan issues were also discussed. receipt.

On the other hand, it was learned that the foreign delegations attending the meetings conveyed their condolences for the terrorist attack on Istiklal Street in Istanbul, in which 6 people lost their lives and 81 people were injured.

CHP Eskişehir Deputy Utku Çakırözer, in a speech he directed at the NATO-PA Defense and Security Commission, said, “The fight against terrorism is the common responsibility of all of us. I call on all our allies, partners and friends to demonstrate our common strength and solidarity against all forms of terrorism, no matter where it comes from. ” used the phrases.

Support for Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership

Another prominent issue in NATO-PA meetings was the messages of support for Finland and Sweden’s membership processes to NATO.

It was learned that the Finnish and Swedish delegations also sought support for their NATO membership in their special meetings with Turkish deputies.

At the General Assembly, Joelle Garriaud Maylam from the French Conservative Party, who was the only candidate, became the chairman of NATO-PA for the next two years.