The Speaker of the Turkish Parliament calls for strengthening unity in the Turkic world: historical opportunities are fleeting

Kazakhstan International News Agency, June 12 - At the plenary session of the Summit of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Turkic Speaking Countries (TurkPA), the Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, Numan Kurtulmus, called on the attending representatives to seize the historic opportunities given by the times under the current complex and ever-changing geopolitical landscape.

"From Central Asia to the Caucasus, from the Caucasus to Anatolia, and from Anatolia extending to Europe, the vast Turkic world is entering a new historical phase. The new era brings new opportunities, and we must seize these chances without missing them. Solidly fulfilling our historical mission is the common responsibility of all Turkic countries. Because, historical opportunities often only come once, and no one knows when or where the next one will appear. The Turkic world is not only a cultural community with three hundred million people, but also one of the most strategically significant regions in the world, rich in resources and great potential. We are fully capable of making new contributions to human civilization," he said.

Kurtulmus pointed out that since the Turkic-speaking countries gained independence, they have developed rapidly and achieved remarkable results, but this is still far from enough.

"The announcement of independence is just the first step. We must further consolidate the foundation of independence, which requires us to gradually achieve autonomy in various fields such as culture, literature, history, science and technology. We must also achieve full independence on key issues such as food security, otherwise, so-called independence may just be an empty phrase written on paper," he emphasized.

He noted that the most important independence is cultural independence.

"Escaping the influence of hegemony is not easy, but we have historical roots and cultural accumulation sufficient to support this path," he added.

Kazakhstan's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev met with the Speakers of the Parliaments of the member states of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Turkic Speaking Countries (TurkPA) in Astana on June 12.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1834736497233920/

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