Turkey is self-sufficient in coronavirus fight: AKP spokesperson

ANKARA- Anadolu Agency

Being self-sufficient in medical equipment is as important as being so in the defense industry, and being a strong country in the provision chain will be one of Turkey's many advantages, Omer Celik, spokesman for the ruling Justice and Development (AKP) said on May 5. 

Speaking at the party's central executive board meeting via video conference, Çelik recalled President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's remarks that "vaccines should be the common property of all humanity" and reminded that according to the World Health Organization, one of the biggest crises in the future will be distribution problems with vaccines.

Çelik said Turkey is en route to a normalization process as announced by President Erdoğan on May 4, and further changes will be made as the number of cases and deaths continues to decrease.

He said the Turkish people are content with the healthcare and social services they have been receiving in this crisis.

'Religious freedom report looks like propaganda'

Meanwhile, Çelik criticized the latest International Religious Freedom Report prepared in the U.S.

"It looks like propaganda text, and especially evaluations about Turkey and the minorities are wrong and unfair.

“This report defines the Operation Peace Spring region as an occupied area, which should be condemned. Turkey cleared this area from terrorists and saved the people from suffering," he said.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom published a report last week which recommended that the US government include Turkey on its "Special Watch List" for engaging in or tolerating severe violations of religious freedom.

'We support national technology movement'

Çelik said the Turkish government fully supports Turkey's national technology movement.

“We have seen the extraordinary work of our engineers in producing ventilators and other medical equipment for virus treatment,” he said.