LGBT issue used as 'battering ram' against family, says Turkish President Erdogan

By Alperen Aktas and Asiye Latife Yilmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that gender-neutralization policies that use LGBT as a "battering ram" are harmful primarily to "the family and the sanctity of the family institution."

Speaking at an introducing the "Year of Family" in the capital Ankara, Erdogan underlined the importance of protecting children and young people from "harmful deviant ideologies" that "threaten families and community structures," which he said was nations’ common responsibility.

"These contents, which are served in a conscious, deliberate, and insistent way, lead to gaining space in LGBT and other gross trends, especially in the policies of gender-neutralization," the president said.

He also emphasized that Türkiye is "one of the rare countries that boldly object to this climate on every platform," including the UN General Assembly.

"The primary goal of the gender neutralization policies, in which LGBT is used as a battering ram, is the family and the sanctity of the family institution."

"We will further strengthen our position in the coming period," he added. "No matter what anyone says, Türkiye's attitude on this issue is obvious, there will never be a step back from it."