Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Şimşek argued on Friday that there is a “big plot” in place in the Middle East and that terrorist organizations aim to stop the rise of developing countries, with Turkey at the top of the list.
Speaking to university students in his hometown of Batman in southeastern Turkey, Şimşek said the current era is the most difficult since World War I and that the impact of the chaos in the Middle East on Turkey, the result of that “big plot,” is massive.
“Terrorist organizations ultimately ask ‘How can we stop’ countries that are on the rise, primarily Turkey,” said Şimşek, who served for years as finance minister under Justice and Development Party (AKP) rule.
“We are not going to be fooled by this plot. Such plots were seen a lot in the past,” Şimşek vowed, reiterating the popular re-emerging argument of foreign powers that are trying to undermine Turkey.
In reference to cities that were demolished during clashes between security forces and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Şimşek said those cities in the Southeast were ruined but that the government would rebuild them from scratch. ¨We are building cities that are beautiful, something they have never been,” Şimşek promised the people in the country’s predominantly Kurdish region.