The 62nd General Assembly of PABSEC, held in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, began its proceedings with the opening speech of the Speaker of the Ukrainian Supreme Rada, Ruslan Stefanchuk. The session continued with a video message from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Later, the Head of the Turkish Parliamentary Delegation, Fatih Dönmez, read a message from Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

After the welcoming speech by PABSEC Secretary-General Asaf Hadjiyev, the session continued with a Family Photo. In the afternoon session, Dr. Akkan Suver emphasized the importance of PABSEC and brought attention to the need for a new security architecture.

Meeting with Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk before the session

The session and opening was chaired by the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament

Participants in front of the Parliament

You see Dr. Suver with Refat Chubarov, the Chairman of the Crimean National Assembly.

Speech of Dr. Akkan Suver at the 62nd General Assembly Meeting of PABSEC

               I would like to begin by extending my respectful greetings to your distinguished delegation at today's session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization, on behalf of the Marmara Group Foundation from Istanbul.

I would also like to express our special thanks to the esteemed members of the Ukrainian Parliament, who are hosting us here today, and congratulate them for the exceptional organization, despite the events that have taken place.

Today, as the Marmara Group Foundation, I would like to talk about the word "peace," which we have been advocating for over twenty-seven years in the Eurasian Economic Summits with the valuable participation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization.

Peace goes through dialogue. Through a bit of hope and a lot of forgetting.

We are living in days of endless suffering—wars, crises, migrations, in short, days filled with infinite pains.

Despite all the destruction suffered by humanity throughout history, neither the United Nations nor peace treaties between countries have been able to stop wars.

Even though World War 1, World War 2, Korea, Vietnam and false springs in the Middle East have made people say "Enough is enough.", Russia's war against Ukraine and Israel's war against Gaza could not be prevented.

No state can justify war except for chasing foreign soldiers who have entered its territory. In this matter, Kemal Atatürk said; "War is murder unless it is necessary." He said.

No country has the right to establish hegemony over another country, to change its borders, to decide what kind of regime it will live in, and to use its underground and aboveground riches.

In order to end the wars and sufferings we are experiencing, we need dialogue and diplomacy rather than weapons. Therefore, it is clear that humanity needs a new security architecture for peace.

As we celebrate the 100^th Anniversary of the Republic of Türkiye, friends of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who founded the Republic of Türkiye asked:

·  My Pasha, Thessaloniki (Selanik) is the city where you were born. Why did you leave it to the Greeks in Lausanne?

·   We could have taken Thessaloniki (Selanik). But then we would have had to give up İzmir. I chose İzmir instead.

My intention in telling this here is to emphasize the importance of making decisions rationally and realistically, not based on post-war emotions, and being willing to make sacrifices if necessary.

After the Turkish War of Independence, the Republic of Türkiye became friends with and immediately engaged in dialogue with its former enemies, Greece, France, England, and Italy.

Otherwise, there is no benefit in spending days with the bitter memory of what happened. It is indeed a fact that there will be no benefit.

We can only get rid of wars, crises and overwhelming problems by aiming for peace with diplomacy.

As the president of the Marmara Group Foundation, I have been working for years to create dialogue in the name of peace.

For the sake of future generations, we should focus on peace, mutual understanding, and living together by sharing.

We are in days when the world is rapidly heading towards destruction by nature, and people seem to perceive each other as adversaries.

Global warming, atmospheric anomalies, and drought are causing harm to our planet, while challenges to peace are increasing daily, and human values are being reinterpreted based on the interests of nations.

We need thoughts that derive their greatness not from power but from representing values and thoughts that can leave behind decades of pain.

I believe that if the possibility of keeping dialogue and diplomatic channels open exists, the path to peace will be paved. This, in turn, will lead us to a new security architecture.

Concluding my words with these sentiments, I would like to inform you that we will organize the twenty-seventh Eurasian Economic Summit on February 21-22, 2024, in Istanbul, focusing on issues related to peace and crises.

We would be delighted to see your high delegation at the 27th Eurasian Economic Summit, which we expect to host at least forty countries, on February 21-22, 2024, in Istanbul.