Türkiye must strengthen its domestic front amid intensifying geopolitical competition across the Middle East and surrounding regions, Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş said Monday, citing Israel's war on Gaza and what he described as its efforts to "destabilize" the wider region.
Speaking at Gaziantep University's 2026-2027 academic year opening ceremony, Kurtulmuş said Türkiye could no longer afford to remain preoccupied with its internal problems as global powers and their militaries increasingly converge on the Balkans, Caucasus, Black Sea, Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East.
"Türkiye has no choice but to stand firmly on its feet in this region," he said, adding that regional developments had made it necessary for the country to strengthen its domestic front.
Kurtulmuş said Israel had been making extraordinary efforts over the past three years to destabilize the region under the pretext of Gaza, adopting an approach that he said threatened all countries in the region.
"Türkiye no longer has the luxury of sacrificing even a single child of this country to terrorism. Türkiye no longer has the luxury of spending even a single penny on the fight against terrorism," he said.
Kurtulmuş said the nearly 50-year-long terrorism problem had hindered Türkiye's development, causing tens of thousands of deaths, including thousands of soldiers, and imposing an economic burden exceeding $2 trillion, according to his estimates.
He said Türkiye had brought together state leadership and public sentiment to address the issue, adding that the current process had gained momentum through political consensus and changing domestic and international conditions.
Kurtulmuş cited the contributions of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli and other political parties, saying their efforts had helped advance the process.
Kurtulmuş highlighted the establishment of the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission and the subsequent adoption of legislation as key steps in the process.
The 50-member commission held 21 meetings and heard proposals from civil society groups across Türkiye.
Its report was approved by 47 lawmakers, which Kurtulmuş described as an example of deliberative democracy.
He said a law passed by parliament on Aug. 10 received 467 votes, with lawmakers from all but one political party supporting it, describing the outcome as an unprecedented level of consensus in Türkiye's republican history.
"The report was the opening of the door. The law, meanwhile, is opening that door all the way," he said.
Kurtulmuş said the process aimed to establish not only a "terror-free Türkiye" but also a "terror-free region," calling for unity and cooperation to advance peace and development.
