Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday said that increasing threats and attacks on the country would not dissuade the country from its goals.
"The increasing threats, violations and attacks on our country’s sovereignty will never dissuade ud from our ideals and goals,” he stated during a speech in Anıtkabir, the mausoleum of the founder of the Turkish Republic Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
The Turkish leader’s message comes on the 96th anniversary of Victory Day, commemorating victory in the Battle of Dumlupınar, in Turkey's Aegean province of Kütahya in 1922, as part of the Great Offensive, which saw invading Greek forces' eventual defeat at the hands of the Turkish army.
Turkey and the U.S. are currently experiencing rocky relations following Washington’s imposition of sanctions on two government ministers for not releasing American pastor Andrew Brunson, who faces terrorism-related charges in Turkey.
President Donald Trump then ramped up his attack on Turkey by doubling U.S. tariffs on Turkish aluminum and steel imports, which caused the Turkish lira to lose value against the U.S. dollar.
Turkey in its turn increased tariffs on several U.S. products, including alcohol, tobacco and cars, according to a new presidential decree published in the official gazette.
