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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on the Turkic world to act in strategic solidarity in response to ongoing regional crises. He warned that conflicts in Palestine, Lebanon, Iran and Ukraine demonstrated the urgent need to "strengthen our defense and increase our cooperation in the industrial sector."
He also unveiled Türkiye's ambition to lead cybersecurity cooperation within the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) during its upcoming presidency at the Organization of Turkic States Informal Summit in Turkistan, Kazakhstan, themed "Artificial Intelligence and Digital Development."
"Crises in Palestine, Lebanon, Iran, Ukraine and many others indicate that we need to strengthen our defense and increase our cooperation in the industrial sector," Erdogan said.
"As Türkiye, we are ready to share the experience we have gained in our defense industry shaped by high technology with the members of our organization," he stated, calling for defense industry institutional meetings to be conducted regularly within the OTS framework.
On cybersecurity, Erdogan was direct: "Cybersecurity is, in today's world, just as vital and necessary as security in land, air and maritime domains. During our upcoming presidency, we aim to further advance coordination and cooperation in cybersecurity within the Organization of Turkic States."
Framing the digital transformation agenda in terms of Turkic cultural heritage, Erdogan said: "The time has come for us, 115 years later, to add 'Unity in digital vision' to Gaspirali's motto of 'Unity in language, thought and action.'"
He said the Turkic world's digital vision must be built on qualified human resources, strong digital infrastructure and data-based public administration, and that digital connectivity between member states must be strengthened.
He warned that falling behind in digital transformation "would also threaten our independence" and said artificial intelligence must not become "a tool of domination." He called on the OTS to approach the technology as an opportunity to be addressed correctly.
President Erdogan expressed his belief that "the fertile lands that produced Harezmi, the father of algebra and algorithm, Farabi, Ibn Sina, Biruni, Ulugbey and Ali Kuschu will produce new scientists."
Highlighting recent cultural milestones, President Erdogan called for a native Turkish-language AI model to elevate the language's global footprint in the digital sphere. He pointed to the declaration of December 15 as "World Turkic Language Family Day"—passed during UNESCO’s 43rd General Conference in Samarkand in 2025—as a landmark shared achievement for the Turkic world.
He said the common Turkic alphabet should be deployed across education, culture, academic collaboration and digital transformation.
Erdogan expressed hope that "the Turkic world will continue to strengthen its political, economic and cultural relations with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC)," welcoming TRNC President Tufan Erhurman's participation in the Turkistan summit as a sign of the Turkic family's completeness.
He pointed to the Hormuz crisis as validation for the strategic priority of connectivity projects: "As demonstrated today in the Hormuz Strait-centered crisis, transportation projects connecting the Turkic world, the Middle Corridor above all, will continue to be our priority for many more years."
He also called for the swift activation of the "OTS Plus" format and said Türkiye would host OTS members in Ankara at the organization's next summit before the year's end.
He asked for support from all Turkic states for Türkiye's candidate, Dr. Mehdi Eker, for the position of director-general of U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The position's election is scheduled for July 2027.
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