In his opening remarks, the Turkish presidency’s Directorate of Communications Altun wished the Turkic Council Media Forum to strengthen the bonds of brotherhood and to be auspicious for the member states, the region and the world.

Noting that the Forum was organized on a significant date, Director of Communications Altun said, “The first Summit of the Turkic Council took place exactly 10 years ago in Kazakhstan. During the Summit, the Turkic Business Council was established to improve relations between the businesspeople from member states. The Turkic Council Media Forum is being held for the first time this year, on the 10th anniversary of that first Summit. I wish for it to be auspicious and yield fruitful outcomes. We are very proud to host such a historic meeting on such a significant day, and would like to express our gratitude for your kind attention.”

"We also fought for information in Karabakh"

Altun indicated that there is another reason why these days and this period are so significant for the Turkic World and noted:

"On these dates last year, Azerbaijani lands in Karabakh were not yet liberated from the occupation. While Azerbaijan’s valiant army defeated the occupiers, Armenians continued their relentless attacks on civilians and residential areas. Unfortunately, they were using bombs and weapons that were prohibited by international agreements and attacking a variety of locations ranging from Ganja to Mingachevir. It was only a year ago that Armenians pointed their guns at the innocent people and set their sight on Azerbaijani lands, economy, and energy lines.

We had the honor of fighting alongside our Azerbaijani brothers on this watershed moment in Turkic history. For 44 days, we contributed to informing the world about Azerbaijan’s rightful cause on the one hand, while fighting disinformation on the other. We tried to inform the entire world about all the facts and realities that Armenians would prefer to be forgotten, using the world’s most prestigious media outlets and news organizations. My esteemed brother and distinguished friend, Hikmet Hajiyev, and we collaborated and fought for information with all our might upon the instructions of our heads of states. We were not deterred in our efforts by lies, defamation campaigns, and disinformation on social media. As a result, we achieved a rhetorical superiority befitting that glorious victory on the ground and bestowed it upon the Turkic World. Availing myself of this opportunity, I would like to wish Allah’s mercy upon Azerbaijan’s martyrs, both civilians, and soldiers, and to reiterate that ‘Karabakh belongs to Azerbaijan’.

"We must be vigilant against modern Trojan horses"

"We consider it a requirement of our morals and a principle to side with the truth against lies and disinformation," Director of Communications Altun said, explaining that the Republic of Türkiye was engaged in a "battle for the truth" both at home and abroad.

Emphasizing that this moral stance has become even more important during this period called "post-truth", Altun continued as follows:

There is literally an industry of lies that seeks to undermine and trivialize the truth and leave societies vulnerable to cultural, economic, and ideological exploitation. Through 'misinformation' or 'fictionalized content,' this fake news industry attempts to constrict or confine societies to the dichotomy of us versus them in many parts of the world. To put it frankly, we regard the fight against the industry of fake news and disinformation as a critical component of our national security, and we approach everything we do with this perspective. On the other hand, disinformation can be found not only in social media but also in conventional media. They can occasionally issue publications that test societies' reflexes and try to trigger fault lines. In this case, I'm referring specifically to foreign-funded institutions and their branches in our countries. We must be vigilant against these modern Trojan horses and work cooperatively to end their harmful activities.

"We will not allow fifth column activities"

Altun stated that they had to take all necessary measures against these foreign-funded media outlets that act as agents of influence, adding, "We appreciate the valuable work done in this area by our Grand National Assembly. We want to make it very clear that we will not tolerate anyone committing fifth column activities in our country under the pretext of 'freedom of the press."

Altun stated that they considered it a primary task to project President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's international vision, which was embodied in his calls "The world is bigger than five" and "A Fairer World is Possible," into the realm of communication, and he quoted President Erdoğan's book titled "A Fairer World is Possible":

We have to put forward a new mental framework for the solution of problems, centered on justice, but without breaking away from the current reality of the global system. Next, we must set a realistic roadmap, focusing on a process that will restructure our institutions and rules. In order to ensure global peace, stability and security, we must create a sustainable restructuring roadmap by putting global justice at the center. As we advocate for justice in global politics, we must focus on justice in the digitalization concept.

"We are facing digital fascism and cyber imperialism"

Emphasizing that they demanded that justice was executed not only in spheres such as politics, economy and culture but also in communications, Altun said, "Today we see that inequality and injustice in the world maintain vitality owing to the domination of certain powers on communication tools. This situation, this socio-political reality which we can also call digital fascism and cyber imperialism, is no longer a phenomenon that we encounter only at the level of states. On the contrary, large international companies are also calculating how to shape public perceptions as they wish and to set the boundaries of discussion."

"We must cooperate to put an end to the perception management operations"

Altun stated that the most effective way to protect against new-generation threats, which are becoming more prevalent, was cooperation, coordination, and solidarity, and said:

We must cooperate to put an end to the perception management operations against our countries, build a positive agenda and ensure the flow of accurate information. We must benefit from each other's experiences and break the patterns in which a certain few are seeking to trap us all in. We have to protect and watch over one another in this era of global uncertainty, where the international order has transformed. For this reason, I would like to express that as the Republic of Türkiye, we are open to all kinds of cooperation with all our brothers in the Turkic Council.

"We must strengthen our channels of information creation and distribution"

Altun said, "Today, our duty as the Turkic Council is to strengthen our channels of information creation and distribution in the face of digital fascism, cyber imperialism, and the global fake news industry. Once more, in this context, and in line with our leaders' fight for the Turkic World's future, we must instill a strong sense of social awareness in the field of communication."

Altun stated that in this context, all the powerful institutions and organizations of Turkish media, particularly TRT and Anadolu Agency, were open to mutual cooperation, experience sharing, and joint projects that would allow societies to better understand each other, and added:

Those of us working within our Directorate of Communications, myself and my colleagues, will continue to fight for the ideal of a great and strong Turkey, under the leadership of our President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and to work relentlessly for the unity, peace and prosperity of the Turkic World; ignoring the threats, giving no credit to intimidation...

"We are prepared to contribute in every way"

Altun stated that many topics would be discussed during the three days of the Turkic Council Media Forum, ranging from the possibilities of the film-TV series industry to the contributions that the media can make to the unity of the Turkic World, from the effective use of social media to the fight against disinformation and that their joint work in the field of communication would support and complement the multidimensional and strong relations between the states.

Altun stated that they were prepared to contribute in every way to increasing the Turkic World's capacity and capabilities in the field of global communication and the fight against disinformation campaigns. (ILKHA)