Politics should lead to mutual benefit, Turkish minister tells Asian political parties

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) – The main goal of politics should be development and mutual benefit, Türkiye’s culture and tourism minister told an Asian political parties conference in Istanbul on Saturday.

Addressing the 11th General Assembly of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP), Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said: “The main goal of politics and international policies should focus on cooperation, mutual benefit, development, and success.”

He underscored that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s slogan that the “World is Bigger Than Five” was “not a political slogan, (but) it is a fact.”

Türkiye’s Justice and Development (AK) Party is hosting the 11th General Assembly of ICAPP, which started on Thursday evening and will conclude on Saturday.

Around 70 political parties from 33 Asian countries, including China, Pakistan, Indonesia, Cambodia, and South Korea, are attending the three-day event.

Ersoy said while Türkiye will commemorate next year its 100th anniversary of founding of the republic, “history records the achievements of a political movement that never compromised on this will in the last 20 years and a national will that is united behind it.”

“President Erdogan,” Ersoy told the conference, “has been the strongest defender of the fact that no problem in the world is insoluble as long as we embrace and glorify humanity without discriminating against any religion, language, race, or culture.

“One-sided gain, an interest-oriented approach, and an insatiable hunger for power and wealth do not serve the future of the world and humanity, but its chaos and disaster. If this planet is set on fire, eventually, the first one to strike the match will burn, too,” the Turkish minister warned.

Recalling Türkiye’s successes in tourism and cultural heritage, Ersoy said: “Türkiye’s worldwide visitor numbers will finish this year on par or slightly above levels in 2019 – which previously held the record.”

“As a result, Türkiye is again revising upwards its target for 2022 from 47 million to 50 million visitors and $37 billion in revenue to $44 billion ,” he said.

Party representatives and around 200 guests from international organizations will deliver speeches on “The Role of Political Parties in Strengthening Dialogue for Global Peace, Prosperity and Cooperation” and adopt a declaration at the end of the conference.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu is also expected to address the participants.

The conference, held once every two years since 2000 when it was launched in the Philippines, was scheduled to be held in Türkiye two years ago, but postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The United Russia party had hosted the 10th General Assembly in Moscow in 2018.