His Excellency WAKABAYASHI Yohei, Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Defense,

Mr. IMAKYUREI Manabu, Commissioner of Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency,

Mr. OUE Sadamasa, Special Advisor to the Prime Minister,

Distinguished Colleagues,

Dear Guests,

It is a great honor to be with you today as we commemorate the 104^th anniversary of “August 30 Victory Day” and the” Turkish Armed Forces Day”.

Today marks a decisive moment in Turkish history which paved the way for the establishment of the Republic of Türkiye.

The victory against the occupying forces demonstrated Turkish nation’s strong commitment to sovereignty and independence.

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On the occasion of this glorious day, I would like to express our profound gratitude to Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the Commander-in-Chief of the War of Independence and the founder of our Republic, as well as to all our martyrs and veterans who heroically fought for our homeland.

The Great Offensive, launched under Atatürk’s command and the Great Victory went down in the annals of history. The military tactics and strategies employed during the Great Offensive continue to influence military thinking today.

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As a beacon of peace in its region, and as a member of NATO, Türkiye continues to actively contribute to the security and stability around its borders and beyond, reflecting the motto of our founder “peace at home, peace in the world”.

This year, we successfully hosted in Ankara the 36th NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government.

The Summit brought together leaders from all 32 Allies to address collective defense, extended deterrence, and regional security.

Participation by the representatives of AP4 countries were particularly meaningful for us.

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Türkiye has developed substantial capacity in defence industry over the years.

Turkish defence industry ecosystem spans a vast supply chain of more than 400 companies, the majority of which consist of big companies and SMEs.

This network simultaneously manages over 1400 domestic and international projects.

Five Turkish firms are listed in the “World’s 100 Largest Defence Industry Companies”.

Türkiye is at the forefront of designing and producing cutting-edge defence technologies across a diverse range of fields: from fighter jets to UAVs; from helicopters to missile systems; and from air defence to electronic warfare systems.

Today, we export more than 230 defence systems to 185 nations.

Within the spirit of mutual benefit, we are pleased to share our experiences in the domain of defence industry with allied, partner and like-minded countries.

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Dear Guests,

The Ertuğrul Frigate disaster of 1890 marks the symbolic beginning of the Turkish-Japanese friendship. Since then, respective militaries and naval forces in particular, have played a special role in furthering relations between our two countries.

Thanks to the steady progress in our cooperation in many fields, we have upgraded our relations to the level of “Strategic Partnership” in 2013.

Today, Japan is our third trade partner in the East Asia and we are trying to strengthen our economic ties further.

There is also strong potential and promising momentum in our military relations.

In January this year, General Metin Tokel, Commander of the Turkish Land Forces, made an official visit to Japan upon the invitation by his counterpart General Arai Yasuhiro.

We held the 5^th Türkiye-Japan Military to Military Dialogue meeting in Tokyo on April 15.

Two countries held their first-ever Defense Industry Cooperation Day at Defence and Aerospace Fair in Istanbul this year, where the Turkish and Japanese defense industry authorities signed a letter of intent to deepen joint work on defense equipment and technology.

In June, Secretary of Defense Industries Haluk Görgün visited Japan and had fruitful meetings with his counterparts including His Excellency Koizumi and Mr. Hajime Aoyagi, former Commissioner of Acquisition, Technology & Logistics Agency.

In July, His Excellency Koizumi participated in the defense-related events of the NATO Ankara Summit. He met with His Excellency Yaşar Güler, Minister of National Defence and Mr. Görgün, Secretary of Defense Industries.

These visits and meetings provided a timely opportunity for both sides to exchange views on issues of mutual interest.

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Honorable guests,

The global order designed and established after World War II is under enormous strain today. We are witnessing an era of uncertainty, marked by multiple crises across multiple regions.

Global balance of power is shifting across a growing number of theatres that carry both regional and global weight, and no single actor can manage global challenges alone.

We can resolve the deepening structural problems of the international order only through effective cooperation among countries that upholds justice, diplomacy, and multilateralism.

Türkiye is bound to Asia by enduring historical links, strategic ties and a sense of shared purpose. We bring the outreach of a country whose strategic horizons extend across Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia, Africa and beyond.

The stability we help build in these regions has a direct bearing on the security and prosperity of Asia because we fully recognize that security of trans-Atlantic and Asia Pacific is indivisible. Effective multilateralism and comprehensive international cooperation serve us better than fragmentation.

Against this backdrop, we consider Japan an important partner.

Our two countries, with their comparative advantages and with their unwavering commitment to global peace, stability and prosperity, can play a constructive and proactive role in addressing global challenges and in seeking sustainable solutions to conflicts in various regions.

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Before concluding, we once again remember gratefully Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of our Republic, as well as his comrades and all our martyrs.

Thank you for your attendance and for your kind attention.