MHP leader says Ankara should pursue pro-active diplomacy amid escalation in region

ANKARA

A Turkish flag is pictured on a boat with the Bosphorus bridge in the background in Istanbul, Turkey, Aug. 6, 2016. (Reuters Photo)

Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli stressed on Jan. 12 that Turkey should pursue pro-active diplomacy in the region as tensions escalate on many fronts.

“Turkey should be the initiator; it should take the front. It should demonstrate the nature of intervening in the developments from the national perspective,” Bahçeli said, speaking at his party’s consultations meeting.

“We cannot isolate ourselves from Iraq. Turning our backs to Libya and keeping a distance to Iran will not be a logical choice,” the MHP leader stated.

Respect for the territorial integrity of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Libya should be the basis and the main strategy of Turkish foreign policy, he noted.

Criticizing that Iran shot down a Ukrainian passenger aircraft, Bahçeli said, “The confession that the Ukrainian passenger plane was hit by mistake is a disaster in one word. Those who are responsible should give account.”

He appreciated the Turkish government’s position following the U.S. killing of Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani.

“The position that Turkey has taken in the face of the assassination, of course, was very balanced,” he stated.

“The audacity of countries that come from thousands of miles away and use arms and force in our region…” he said, referring to the U.S.

“It appears that the United States will continue its serial murders in Iraq. The Turkish nation will resist imperialism. It is our basic preference and expectation that Iraq, Syria, and Libya have peace.”