Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday, "we have nothing to do with people who see terrorism as a legitimate way and kill innocent people on this path."

Addressing the nation, Erdogan said that they would not let terrorism capture Turkey, adding that they had to open a new page in history which would bring dialogue, harmony and integration instead of hostile feelings and aggressive judgements.

Erdogan said that the process "democratic move" was in fact a multidimensional "national unity" process. He added that the object of the democratic move was not only to end terrorism but also to remove the obstacles before the well-being of the country and brotherhood of the people.

This is a move of love, peace and brotherhood, he added.

Erdogan said that they wanted everybody in the country to have basic rights and freedoms without question.

We want everybody in this country to count on the state, and feel safe in democracy, said Erdogan.

"Fruitful October"

Erdogan said that Turkey's active foreign policy vision was boosting the international prestige of the country each day. He added that Turkey had been in a very pleasing period regarding the solution of regional problems and relations with neighbors.

Erdogan said that October was a very fruitful month, adding that Istanbul hosted IMF-World Bank meetings on October 6 and 7, and nearly 15,000 people from 200 countries visited Turkey for these meetings. He said that also Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly meeting took place in Istanbul on October 23.

He said that Turkey hosted many high-level international summits and meetings in recent years and it showed the rising international prestige of Turkey.

Recalling that they held very beneficial diplomatic meetings with close neighbors and friendly countries in October, Erdogan said that formal protocols were signed by Turkey and Armenia on October 10 to normalize relations. He added that on October 14, Armenian and Turkish presidents watched a soccer game between the national teams of the two countries in Turkish northwestern province of Bursa.

Erdogan expressed hope that the disagreements between Turkey and Armenia would be solved by historians and scientists, and the two countries develop relations.

We also want Upper Karabakh issue between Armenia and Azerbaijan to be solved through dialogue, said Erdogan adding that Turkey had always seen interests of Azerbaijan as the interests of Turkey.

Erdogan also said that Turkey and Syria mutually lifted visa procedures in October, adding that the relations between the two countries were gaining momentum each day.

Noting that they paid a historical visit to Iraq on October 15, Erdogan said that Turkey and Iraq signed a total of 48 memorandums of understanding to develop cooperation almost on every area.

Erdogan said that now Turkey was getting prepared to mutually start a strategic cooperation process with Russia.

Regarding his visit to Pakistan, Erdogan said that they held very fruitful meetings and exchanged views about regional peace, global economic crisis and international matters. He added that Turkish businessmen made important connections with Pakistani business circles.

Noting that he proceeded from Pakistan to Iran, Erdogan said that they launched new initiatives to increase economic and commercial relations. He added that they discussed to restore peace in the Middle East as well as energy policies, fight against terrorism and nuclear weapons.

Erdogan said that Turkey's stance about Iran's nuclear program was clear, adding that Turkey wanted to live in a region which was purified from nuclear weapons.


AA