Main opposition CHP welcomes summit on Libya

ANKARA

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, rear center, leads a conference on Libya at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Jan. 19, 2020. (Hannibal Hanschke/Pool Photo via AP)

The main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) on Jan. 20 welcomed the recently held Berlin summit on Libya, saying the number of countries Turkey cooperates with on regional issues should increase.

“We welcome the Berlin summit. The number of capitals Turkey can work with on regional issues should be increased. This will not go for long just working with Moscow and the White House,” CHP spokesperson Faik Öztrak said.

“The agreement in Libya is significant. But what’s important is involving countries’ fulfilment of their commitment,” he said. He added that the region’s problems should be solved by the regional states and societies.

Öztrak’s remarks came during a press conference at the CHP headquarters in capital Ankara.

Öztrak also slammed the government’s foreign policy, echoing CHP chief Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu’s previous remarks on being “too dependent on [Russian President Vladimir] Putin.”

Kılıçdaroğlu had previously accused the government of directing foreign policy in accordance with Putin’s regional interests.

“Ceasefire in Idlib has been halted again. We say that the problems in Syria should be tackled by dialogue with Syria’s legitimate administration but they [criticize] us. But when Putin says so, Turkish and Russian officials sit at the same table in Moscow,” Öztrak said.

He was referring to a meeting between Turkish intelligence chief Hakan Fidan and his Syrian counterpart in Moscow.
“If [the government] did this when we said it, then we would have controlled the situation without spending millions of liras and giving away martyrs,” he added.

The party spokesperson also drew attention to Ankara’s recent rapprochement with Moscow, saying President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reportedly met with his Russian counterpart 70 times in three years.

He also accused Erdoğan of “pampering” Russia and the United States.

“The foreign policy Erdoğan has been personalized for his political future. He did not only turn the [ruling party] into a Ping-Pong ball but also immensely damaged our country’s vital interests,” he said.

“Turkey cannot shelter under a ‘precious loneliness’,” he added.