US abstaining on UN Gaza cease-fire resolution 'good news': Turkish parliament speaker

By Ali Kemal Alkan

ISTANBUL (AA) – The US’s abstention on the UN Security Council’s resolution for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza during Ramadan is “good news,” Turkish parliament speaker Numan Kurtulmus said Tuesday.

“They see now that they cannot simply walk away from here by throwing (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu off their backs and washing their hands of it. By abstaining, a step has been taken towards the possibility of a new peace, or at least a cease-fire, emerging,” Kurtulmus said.

Kurtulmus said Israel's attacks on Gaza bear certain similarities to the Russia-Ukraine war and underlined the necessity of resolving these issues.

"Both have the potential to ignite regional conflicts and bring humanity to the brink of a new global war,” he said.

He said that Türkiye, particularly through the initiatives taken by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has demonstrated to the global community that the resolution of both issues will take place within the framework of humanitarian diplomacy.

Kurtulmus highlighted that the “ongoing massacre” in Gaza goes beyond being a mere attack against the people of the enclave, as it poses the danger of being escalated into a regional war by Netanyahu and “his cohort.”

He underlined the urgent need to stop these attacks promptly to prevent them from leading to even greater consequences.

Kurtulmus also condemned last week’s terrorist attack on a concert hall in Moscow.

“As children of a nation that has suffered greatly from terrorism, we know that all forms of terrorism are hostile to humanity,” he said.

Stressing that whoever is behind the attack committed “a grave crime against humanity,” he expressed hope that the forces and reasons behind the attack will be revealed.

Kurtulmus underlined that Ankara never viewed the Russia-Ukraine war solely as a bilateral conflict but recognized its potential to escalate into a broader confrontation between Russia and the West, thus explaining their endeavors to promptly terminate the conflict.

He said Russia and Ukraine were on the verge of signing a peace agreement at Dolmabahce Palace in Istanbul, adding “it was possible to achieve a fair and just peace that both sides would accept.”

“Türkiye had truly brought this to a certain point. However, we saw that some forces who did not want this war to end obstructed the finalization of an agreement at Dolmabahce Palace,” he added.

He said the tensions between Russia and Ukraine not only affect the Black Sea and Eastern Europe but also have the potential to spread to a much broader region.

Kurtulmus noted that Türkiye will utilize its peaceful initiative to the “fullest extent” and make efforts at the diplomatic table to ensure peace between the two nations.

*Writing by Esra Tekin in Istanbul