THE valiant people of Turkey commemorated Democracy and National Unity Day on Wednesday to remember the veteran and martyrs of July 15, 2016 deadly coup attempt against the Turkish government by Fethullah Terrorist Organisation. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, who is certainly the most popular leader in the Muslim world for his farsighted vision and unequivocal stance on important issues facing Muslim Ummah, survived a military coup attempt with a magnificent determination and support of the Turkish nation proving to the world they do not recognize any power over their will and stand ready to sacrifice their lives to protect their state and the democratic system.
On behalf of people and government of Pakistan, Prime Minister Imran Khan also extended a message of solidarity to Turkey on the occasion saying Pakistan continues to stand by Turkey and is taking all possible steps to support Turkey’s efforts to address the threat posed by Fethullah Gullen Terrorist Organization (FETO).Given the historic bonds that exist between our two nations, the events of 15th July in Turkey had also disturbed the common man in Pakistan and as also stated by the PM, the entire nation spoke with one voice against the attempt to undermine Turkey’s peace, democracy and march towards prosperity. This is the reason that soon after the coup attempt, Pakistani government took action against the staff of Pak-Turk schools having any links with the FETO. And now the very word of PM Imran Khan is a reminder that there is no space in Pakistan for the elements posing threat to Turkey. This love and affection is not unilateral but mutual in nature. The whole world is witness to the fact as to how the Turkish President while addressing the joint session of parliament during his last visit to Pakistan emphatically and in clear words vowed to back Pakistan in the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) in addition to supporting its stance on outstanding Kashmir dispute – something which angered India. Both Pakistan and Turkey have suffered immensely because of terrorism especially owing to the spill-over effects of conflicts in their neighbouring countries. We are confident that both the countries will continue to maintain engagements at different levels in order to meet the common challenges collectively. Efforts should also be expedited to transform the strong fraternal relations into a robust & dynamic trade and economic partnership bringing the people of both the countries further close to each other.
