Heads of Foreign Missions - Iftar Program

26 March 2024

Distinguished Guests,

Esteemed Representatives of the Diplomatic Missions,

Welcome, all of you, to our iftar program; you have brought joy with you.

I would like to say how happy I am that we are together on this beautiful Ramadan evening, on the occasion of this meaningful iftar, in our İstanbul, the sultan of cities. God willing, with its goodness and its blessing, the month of Ramadan will bring tranquillity, peace and health to all of us, to our families and to all humanity.

Esteemed Guests,

At the very beginning of my remarks, I strongly condemn the terrorist attacks in Russia. Terror is terror; every kind of terror must be opposed without discrimination, and we must all fight against terrorism together.

As citizens of a country that fights simultaneously against many terrorist organizations and that has lost thousands of its people to terror, we are of the opinion that cooperation must be carried out at the highest level and continuously so that heinous terrorist attacks are not experienced again.

Again at the very beginning of my remarks, I once more condemn the genocide taking place in Gaza and strongly reject the policies of occupation and discrimination against the Palestinians and the violations of human rights. We regard the recent resolution of the United Nations Security Council, which provides for an immediate ceasefire to be declared in Gaza and for all hostages to be released, as a belated ray of hope.

When we look at the matter from the perspective of international law and its humanitarian dimensions, we see that Israel continues to commit crimes against humanity in Gaza under the “Fourth Geneva Convention”, which contains articles in particular on the protection of civilians.

Crimes such as the destruction of residential areas through air strikes continuously carried out against the civilian population, ethnic cleansing and forced evacuation are being committed openly before the eyes of the international community.

This problem, in which international law is openly violated, will again be solved through the pressure of the international community. As a country, we are engaged in intense diplomatic efforts. We are doing everything we can to mobilize the global conscience and to make it prevail.

Moreover, as you know, the humanitarian tragedy in Gaza deepens with each passing day. As MÜSİAD, we too organize special humanitarian aid campaigns for our Palestinian brothers and sisters, and we will resolutely continue our work on this matter.

Distinguished Guests,

As we all know, coming together over a meal, meeting around a table and conversing exist in almost every culture in the world.

Wherever in the world you go, the culture of the table has the quality of bringing people together and reconciling them. Today, when we come from very different parts of the world and meet around a single table, we know that we have come together in order to listen to and understand one another.

Thanks to this deep-rooted and powerful tradition, families come together and ease their longing, friendships are strengthened and friends share their troubles, matters are resolved and those who are estranged are reconciled; new projects are first discussed over meals and agreements for new partnerships are made.

As in every culture, for us Muslims too coming together over a meal is a very meaningful tradition. Moreover, when this gathering takes place in the month of Ramadan, it becomes far more meaningful for us...

Because the most important characteristic of the month of Ramadan is that it unites and reconciles. In the month of Ramadan the poor and the orphans are looked after, the hungry are fed and the needs of those in need are met… Those who are estranged are brought together and reconciled… Because in Ramadan no one stays resentful of another.

For us Muslims, too, coming together at iftar tables has great meaning. That these gatherings in which we come together should be a means of goodness and should turn into fine works for us is the most sincere wish of us all.

Esteemed Guests,

Our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: “The best of people is the one who is most beneficial to people…”

Under his guidance, we too must avoid useless deeds and shed the sweat of our brow for fine works that will benefit humanity. And while doing so, we must always hold an understanding that gives hope, that instils hope and that does not fall into pessimism…

Recently, despite various adversities, the upward trend in our economy instils great hope in all of us.

Growing by %4 in the last quarter of 2023, the Turkish economy achieved growth of %4.5 for the whole of last year. Thus our national economy has carried its positive growth trend to the 14th consecutive quarter and continues to sustain the claim of the “Century of Türkiye”.

Despite the slowdown trend in the global economy, this performance displayed by the Turkish economy is a commendable development. Following the local elections to be held at the end of this month, God willing, we anticipate that the dynamism in our economy will increase even further.

As MÜSİAD, which carries out its activities in the capacity of a civil actor of commercial diplomacy, I would like to reiterate our belief that the production-, export- and employment-oriented growth process of our national economy will continue.

As you know, our country ranks third among the countries with the most widespread diplomatic network in global terms. As MÜSİAD, we too intensively continue our commercial diplomacy activities in order to develop the cooperation among us and to carry our commercial relations to a higher level. Within this framework we organize international business forums, fairs and business trips.

Türkiye, an island of stability, increases with each passing day its quality of being a centre of attraction through its proximity to energy resources, its position at the crossroads of strategic trade routes and its strong logistics bases. With your support as well, we believe that in the coming years we will carry our commercial relations to a much better point.

Esteemed Guests,

Esteemed MÜSİAD Family,

I ask God that the month of Ramadan we are in may be a means of increasing goodness and may multiply the good within our hearts…

I pray to our Lord that this season of mercy and blessing may be a means for wars to end and for lasting peace to be established, especially in our region.

I thank you very much for your participation and greet you all with respect and reverence.

May God protect you.

Mahmut Asmalı

President of MÜSİAD