Address of the 11th President Abdullah Gül to the 28th Anniversary of the of the D-8

June 2025, İstanbul

Distinguished Chairmen, fellow Ministers that we served in the same cabinet, Members of Parliament, Ambassadors, Consuls General, dear guests, I greet you all with respect and affection.

Today, we have come together to commemorate the establishment of the D-8 and to reinforce its good vision. I would like to thank the Saadet Party for organizing this meeting traditionally, and I would like to thank the esteemed Chairman Mahmut Arıkan for inviting us here. In fact, the esteemed chairmen have just made very good speeches, highlighting different aspects. I would like to thank them all for addressing both the past and the present. When it comes to the D-8, of course, I would like to start my remarks by remembering the late Mr. Erbakan, the founder and architect of the D-8, with grace, gratitude, and respect.

Mr. Erbakan, after thinking and developing this idea in his mind and deciding to establish such an organization, gave me the task of doing the technical work as a Minister in the cabinet. On this occasion, we visited many countries, from Indonesia to Malaysia to Iran, and held meetings. In the end, all the leaders gathered at the Çırağan Palace, and the establishment of the D-8 was announced by taking a picture on this famous balcony. I have always felt a sense of belonging to the D-8 since I carried out the technical work for its establishment. I have attended its summit meetings in all my state positions and when I was president. Currently, I am pleased to see that Mr. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan gives the highest importance to the D-8.

If we go back to those days, thirty years ago, there was a different world. Fellow speakers also touched upon it. In those days, the Soviet Union had collapsed. The world had come to a new state. Some people said it was the end of history. The biggest development was the independence of Muslim Turkic Republics and Turkic States. After a long captivity and sixty years of Soviet rule, these countries were finally independent. After the breakup of Yugoslavia, although there was great suffering and persecution in the Balkans, in the end, efforts were made to find a solution, and somehow, a solution was found. When we look back at those years, Iraq had not been invaded. NATO had not intervened in Afghanistan. Al-Qaeda had not organized a terrorist attack in New York.

Palestine was still the biggest issue for Muslims and the most important issue in the world. Even then, there were efforts for dialog between the East and the West. There were initiatives like the Madrid Conference and the Oslo Meetings, and there was an approach for a two-state solution. Politically, there was a more positive atmosphere in the world. While these developments were taking place, economically, the G8s, which started as the G7s, came together in the format of the Club of the Rich. They were establishing platforms to further their own economic interests and developing cooperation among themselves in a strong way. In such an environment, our then government and Prime Minister said, 'Why shouldn't the Muslim world be in solidarity in the same way? Why shouldn't the Muslim world realize economic cooperation in the best way possible?" With the thought of these sublime values that are good for all humanity, not just for Muslims, he pioneered the establishment of the D-8 platform.

Almost thirty years have passed since then. I read the 2030 Vision Document of the D-8. Of course, very good technical work has been done, and very good targets have been set in trade, investments, and other areas. There is actually a prerequisite for all this to be realized.

In order for the existing potentials to be mobilized, each country must be a decent, solid, reputable, good country; its governments must be solid, its political grounds must be sound; there must be a system where the rule of law isrespected, where justice exists, where transparent rules are applied, where everyone is held accountable, and where everyone abides by these rules. Otherwise, the potential will not be mobilized. With the establishment of that atmosphere, the great potential of all these countries, from Bangladesh to Nigeria, from Egypt to Türkiye, will be realized.

In order for this potential to be mobilized, the energy should not be wasted in itself but rather directed towards development. This is the clear formula for these countries to become developed countries. Good governance and all the rules of good governance need to be implemented. As long as these are in place, each country will become stronger, and when each country becomes stronger, collectively, of course, the Islamic world will become stronger.

Dear participants, today, thirty years later, unfortunately, we are not in a position to be very proud of. There is no doubt that we may have singular achievements, but none of these countries have yet to be recognized as developed countries. Although thirty years have passed, this is, of course, very painful. We cannot look for the reasons for this only externally. There is no doubt that there have been great political upheavals. The backbone of some Islamic countries has been broken. Some Islamic countries are still experiencing civil wars; shameful situations continue in Libya and Sudan. There is no doubt that the colonial era is behind all this.  But let us not forget that the blame cannot be laid entirely outside. If we recall how the regimes and leaders of many Islamic countries have been at odds with their own people, how they have been at odds with each other, we should realize that what is happening to us is not in vain.

Distinguished guests, distinguished participants, when it comes to Palestine, in thirty years, its territory has become smaller, since the occupation continues and settlements are multiplying. The brutality of the occupation has intensified. Currently, the genocide continues recklessly. I don't know if any of you have been there, but I have traveled to Gaza and all the lands of Palestine step by step.

When I was an MP from the Fazilet Party, I went to Palestine as a rapporteur in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe with German and French colleagues as a Turkish MP. The settlements I saw in those days were horrifying. The roadblocks in the West Bank and the cruelty I saw were also horrifying. From that day to today, when we think about what is happening today, of course, it is impossible to bear. This is why things did not happen spontaneously. The Secretary-General of the United Nations said very succinctly that “nothing happened in a vacuum”. There were many reasons for what happened. Even if we don't agree with some of them, in that state of psychology, the people living there can go crazy and do anything. I saw this thirty years ago. After thirty years of this persecution, what has it become today?

How does Israel dare to do this? Actually, Israel does not have the power to do this on its own. But there are two reasons for this. The first is the opportunity that the Islamic world has given to Israel, which is a pity. The Islamic world is divided within itself. So much so that until yesterday, it was the Muslim countries that some Muslim countries perceived as the primary threat, not Israel. Arab countries were divided among themselves, imposed embargoes on each other, and besieged each other. Worse and more unbelievable, Palestine is divided within itself. When we talk about ‘two states’, unfortunately we are talking about two states within Palestine. Despite all efforts, this unification could not be realized. Of course, in such an environment, Israel, which is ideologically obsessed within itself, is implementing these strategies. Would it have been able to show such recklessness in attacking one of the pillars of the Islamic world like Iran, if it had not caught the Islamic world in such a disorganized state?

The whole world knows that Israel possesses nuclear weapons. That is why Israel gets nervous when proposals for a nuclear-free Middle East come up. However, it gets the courage to show this audacity, commit this aggression, this lawlessness, and this recklessness because it finds the Islamic world in such a disorganized state.

The second is this, and it is very clear: Israel is not at war with the Palestinians. In fact, Israel does not have the power to continue this war, this genocide, and this atrocity. This needs to be clearly named. In fact, many honest politicians, scientists, thinkers, and human rights defenders, both American and European, have named it clearly and continue to do so.

This is a war between the Palestinians and the United States of America who unconditionally supports Israel. On the very day of the holy Muslim holiday, the United States alone rejected the ceasefire proposal made jointly by the fourteen members of the Security Council. “Let this genocide continue,” it said. We cannot ignore this reality.

But here is another unbelievable and truly horrifying aspect: The current Israeli government, which committed this genocide and massacres, is the most marginalized government Israel has ever had. The Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers are the most extreme, the most marginalized. Half of the Israeli people are against what is happening in Gaza today, while the other half is taking to the streets. I read recently in Haaretz Newspaper. I saw that former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said, “Israel is committing war crimes in Gaza.” The headline was exactly this: “Israel is committing a war crime in Gaza.”

Now, the fact that all this is so obvious, that there is such a marginal government, and that some of the ministers in this government, especially the security minister, were once wanted as ‘terrorists. When there was a Peace Agreement between Israel and Egypt, these people who went to the office of the then Israeli Prime Minister Rabin seized his car and challenged him, saying,“Now we have your car, tomorrow we will seize you,” and then assassinated their own prime minister are in this cabinet today. The horrifying thing is this: The United States and some European countries fully support such an Israeli government and its massacres. This is unbelievable but true.

This is what needs to be done: Instead of individually trying to curry favor with the new American administration, Islamic countries must collectively, at the highest level, as kings, presidents, emirs, and prime ministers, put maximum pressure and demands on the United States of America in a very strong manner. Such a position is necessary not only for Palestine and Muslims but also for the world, America, Europe, and all of humanity.

Muslim countries need to speak with one voice, one heart, and use all means against the US to end this genocide and for a two-state solution. This was done in the past when Al-Aqsa was burned. King Faisal had led the Arabs, and such a reaction was given. Why can't it be done today?

Otherwise, statements and marches are all valuable, at least reflecting the sentiment. But it is necessary to see the clear reality of the situation and to organize it in the most careful and strongest way. Because this is vital not only for the future of the Middle East, but also for the future of the whole world and their own future. The man who started out by saying “America First” is today dragging the world into the fire. He is following a small group of people and supporting their massacres and genocide. And perhaps this fire they have created, Allah forbid, will grow so big that it will have far greater regional consequences.

I would like to take this opportunity to once again wish Mr. Erbakan grace and may he rest in peace. All of his ideas that founded the D-8 were not only for Muslims but for all people to live in peace and tranquility. I would like to thank Mr. Mahmut Arıkan for keeping this tradition alive and again wish you all success.