By Janet Ekstract ISTANBUL Ahead of this weekend’s elections, on Tuesday, Turkish President Erdogan spoke at a rally in Aksaray in Central Anatolia. Erdogan warned the world is on a collision course with “tensions rising everywhere.” As the Turkish president remarked: “We are witnessing the most painful examples of how the so-called great states and the international organizations under their control, do no good to anyone.” The Turkish president was referring to a number of regional conflicts happening simultaneously, underscoring the most dire crises in Gaza and Ukraine. Erdogan has repeatedly criticized the West for what he says is its hypocrisy and ineffective action on the Gaza conflict. As Erdogan remarked: “They are attempting to drag Turkiye into this catastrophic scenario with the countless attacks we have been subjected to in the last 10 years. We cannot give up now just because some ambitious people want it that way.” The Turkish leader reiterated that some “circles that are disturbed by the power and potential of our country want to drag our nation into the swamp of pessimism by using the opposition.”
Without specifying who those ‘circles’ are, he pointed out that they want to “instill insecurity and instability in Turkiye.” Erdogan also mentioned issues at home, explaining: “It is clear that the problems we are experiencing as a country will not be solved with words, as the opposition does.” He reassured people that measures to control inflation are being implemented and said that though state salaries were adjusted for inflation that due to runaway levels in inflation, that even a major salary rise, doesn’t seem sufficient. Erdogan added: “We are constantly taking steps to compensate for the decrease in the purchasing power of our employees and retirees,” reassuring his citizens that his government is determined to control inflation.
