“I express enormous thanks to President Rumen Radev. Bulgaria was the first country in Europe to send rescue teams and aid to our country”
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu chose the Bulgarian city of Shumen for the traditional Muslim iftar.
In an interview with BNT, he commented on bilateral relations with Bulgaria and the situation in Ukraine.
– Dear Mr. Minister, welcome to Bulgaria. Why did you choose Shumen for this visit and this Iftar?
– You know that Shumen is located in Ludogorie. This place that is famous for its wrestlers. Many of our compatriots also live here, especially because I had never been here before, but I had a great desire to visit Shumen. I was in Varna while I was the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. I have also been to Balchik, but not in this part of the country. That’s why we chose this place in particular.
– You know, today was an important day for Bulgaria, because the first session of the 49th National Assembly was held. What will this bring to bilateral relations?
– First of all, I would like to note the huge help we received from Bulgaria after the earthquake in Turkey. First of all, I would like to express my enormous thanks to President Rumen Radev. Bulgaria was the first country in Europe to send rescue teams and aid to our country. On the other hand, a huge number of tents and basic necessities for the victims were sent from here.
Bulgaria was also the first country in Europe to lower its flags to half-mast in memory of the victims. Bulgaria and Turkey have excellent relations – we are neighbors and allies and we are developing cooperation at every level. We have common positions and stand in solidarity on various topics such as migration. We were also close to Bulgaria, for example during the COVID pandemic.
You also know, we are experiencing an energy crisis because of the war in Ukraine, and the signing of the agreement between Bulgargaz and Botaz was an expression of our friendship. Thus, in this difficult moment, by increasing the capacity of the natural gas that comes from Azerbaijan, we want to help Bulgaria and other friendly countries. On the other hand, we also have 5 LNG terminals in Turkey. Our friendship with Bulgaria does not depend on who is in power.
For us, the most important thing is to establish a stable government in Bulgaria. We would not interfere in the internal affairs of the country, but in the last 2 years elections were held 5 times. Establishing a stable government will be good for the entire region.
You know that there are contradictions in the Balkans as well. We have all suffered from the consequences of war. And not only us, but the whole world. Therefore, with the opening of the National Assembly, we wish success to all political parties in terms of forming a government”.
– Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Turkey a week ago. Then you spoke again about achieving a just peace. What do you mean by fairness?
– We say it every time. We were not the first to say it during Sergey Lavrov’s visit to Turkey. When we talk about a just peace, we believe that it should be just for Ukraine as well, because both the other countries and Turkey support the preservation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and borders. Of course, more than a year had passed since the start of the war.
Unfortunately, the conflict continues and deepens. In the months ahead, both sides are preparing for even bigger attacks. This also worries us. Therefore, we believe that an hour soon, sitting at the negotiating table and through diplomacy, a just peace that both sides would accept should be achieved.”
– NATO is growing. Turkey has ratified the acceptance of Finland, but not so with Sweden. How do you see the future of the Alliance in this context?
– NATO is expanding, and Turkey has always supported the “open door policy”, but NATO is also a security alliance and is responsible for the security of all members of the alliance. Therefore, at the meeting in Madrid, it was reaffirmed that one of the two biggest threats is terror.
In this line of thought, I can say that Turkey and Sweden are connected by historical friendship, but unfortunately, terrorist organizations continue to exist in Sweden – attracting people, including collecting money to finance terrorism. Terrorist propaganda continues. We would consider their application once they have fulfilled the requirements from Madrid. Regardless of the laws adopted and the positions stated, we want to see their application”.
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