Turkish president says Israel is ‘trampling on humanity’s shared values,’ urges reform of global order

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday that Israel is “trampling on humanity’s shared values through the crimes against humanity it has committed.”

In a post on social media, Turkish Communications Director Burhanettin Duran said Erdogan had written an article titled “The Key to Peace in Eurasia: The Turkic World” for Kazakhstan’s Kazinform news agency.

The article was published following Erdogan’s visit to Astana for the sixth meeting of the Türkiye-Kazakhstan High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council.

Erdogan said regional conflicts and crises today constitute comprehensive challenges to global security, economic prosperity, and stability.

He noted that the global system is undergoing a serious stress test in the face of new asymmetric risks arising from geopolitical rivalry, disruptions in energy supply security, and related financial volatility.

Erdogan also underlined that the major transformation driven by artificial intelligence has further deepened the fragility of the global system.

“Indeed, as we have long maintained, these challenges lay bare the inadequacies of the current international system and global governance mechanisms as well as the pressing need for reform,” he said.

Recalling his address to the UN General Assembly in 2014, Erdogan highlighted the inequities embedded within the global system, saying the message that “the world is bigger than five” carries even greater relevance today.

He said the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza has laid bare the shortcomings of the existing international order.

Erdogan said Türkiye believes global and regional crises can only be resolved through an order based on “enforceable rules,” stressing that Ankara continues to take responsibility through peace diplomacy, mediation efforts, and “trust-based dialogue” to promote global peace and prosperity.

He wrote that stronger bilateral, regional, and global cooperation is essential for a “fairer, more inclusive, and stable” international order, emphasizing that disputes should be addressed through “regional ownership” and collaboration with neighboring countries and organizations, particularly the Organization of Turkic States.

Erdogan said Türkiye’s partnership with Kazakhstan holds “an exceptional place” in its foreign policy, particularly in addressing the structural challenges facing the UN Security Council, advancing conflict resolution, and ensuring lasting economic prosperity.

– Bilateral trade target of ’15 billion dollars’

“In 1991, Türkiye became the first country to recognize Kazakhstan on the very day it declared its independence,” Erdogan wrote, adding that relations “drawing strength from our shared history and our cultural and spiritual bonds, have grown steadily stronger with each passing day.”

He said bilateral ties entered “a new phase” in the 2000s, while trade volume is “approaching $10 billion,” Turkish investments in Kazakhstan have “nearly reached $6 billion,” and Turkish contractors have completed “close to 550 projects in Kazakhstan worth more than 30 billion dollars.”

Erdogan said Türkiye and Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev have set a bilateral trade target of $15 billion.

He said strengthening cooperation in education, sports, and culture remains a priority in deepening Türkiye-Kazakhstan ties, and invited “our Kazakh brothers and sisters” to Ankara, named the 2026 Tourism Capital of the Turkic World by the Organization of Turkic States.

Highlighting his May 14 visit amid regional tensions and the fragile Gaza ceasefire, Erdogan said talks and the informal Turkic States summit would focus on expanding political, economic, and cultural cooperation.

He added that Turkic nations would continue working for “peace, prosperity, and tranquility,” guided by Khoja Ahmad Yasawi’s wisdom: “If the have-nots remain unsated while the haves shed no tears, the world is bound to fall.”