Erdogan addresses Turkish nation on TV channels

In a monthly address to the Turkish nation on TV channels, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime's brutal violence against its own people was evidence of the regime's panic and desperation. "Syria once again has become a test paper for the international community. Those who stay as onlookers to the ongoing bloodshed have been separated from those on the side of human conscience. Those supporting the Assad regime have lost credibility in the eyes of their people," Erdogan said, adding that Turkey will never tolerate initiatives that may pose a threat to its security and that the escalating tyranny and cruelty are the signs of the inevitable end in Syria. Erdogan added that Damascus and Aleppo would give the necessary response to the tyrants with their own sons and reconstruct themselves based on courage, justice and reason. Erdogan also responded to criticisms regarding Turkey's Syrian policy, saying that every development, crisis, issue in the Middle East was directly related to Turkey and its economy and that instability in the region directly or indirectly affected Turkey's stability, prosperity, trade and investments. Furthermore, Erdogan received Bakir Izetbegovic, the Bosniak member of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s tripartite presidency, and discussed relations between the two countries. Izetbegovic also attended the iftar (fast-breaking meal) which was organized for the Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) Central Decision Executive Body (MKYK) members.