No terrorist action can be justified - Turkish President
TURKEY: Turkey does not condone acts of terrorism on any grounds.
Bilateral and Multilateral co-operation is essential in combating this
threat, Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul said proposing a toast to
President Mahinda Rajapaksa at a banquet hosted in his honour at the
Presidential Palace in Ankara on Tuesday night.
President Gul said: “Today we live in a world full of serious
challenges. Many of these affect our countries in varying levels. But I
feel the need to especially underline one of them, since it consumes
innocent lives, causing enormous damage in Turkey and Sri Lanka. That is
terrorism. “Turkey and Sri Lanka are two countries that suffered greatly
from terrorism. Turkey is against any kind of terrorist act, whatever
the reason is. We believe that no terrorist action can be justified on
any grounds. We attach utmost importance to bilateral and multilateral
cooperation in dealing with this threat.” President Mahinda Rajapaksa
responding said: “Sri Lanka and Turkey share similarities in values,
ideals and concerns. We both have demonstrated a great degree of
consistency in defending and upholding the democratic rights of our
people.
We have very well understood each others concerns. In this context
let me place on record that Sri Lanka has and will always appreciate,
the solidarity shown by Turkey in Sri Lanka’s fight against the menace
of terrorism. This close affinity has been a telling feature in our
bilateral relations, considering the threat of terrorism posed to
Turkey.” |