Türkiye is taking firm measures against airspace violations while continuing efforts to safeguard national security and stability amid the U.S.-Israel war with Iran, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Thursday.

"With the awareness that we bear the responsibility of 86 million people, we never abandon caution and prudence. While taking a very firm stance against actions that violate our airspace, we also continue to take steps to strengthen the peace and security of our nation," Erdoğan said.

The president made the remarks in a video message greeting Turkish citizens on Ramadan Bayram, also known as Eid al-Fitr, the festival that follows the holy month of Ramadan.

He expressed his wishes for the Eid to bring goodness, blessings and beauty to the country, the Islamic world and all humanity, and also mentioned the situation in the Middle East.

"Our brothers and sisters in Gaza are trying to observe Ramadan Bayram under Israel's attacks, which violate cease-fire rules and block humanitarian aid. In various parts of Palestine, especially East Jerusalem and the West Bank, as well as in southern Lebanon, policies of occupation and destruction continue at full intensity," he said.

He also emphasized that attacks launched against Iran on Feb. 28, along with Iran's missile and drone retaliations toward third countries, have further escalated regional tensions.

"In the face of this troubling picture, with the awareness that we bear the responsibility of 86 million people, we never abandon caution and prudence," Erdoğan said, adding that Türkiye continues to take firm measures against airspace violations and to strengthen national security.

Türkiye reported that NATO defenses have shot down three ballistic missiles fired from Iran since the war began. After the second interception, NATO deployed Patriot defenses in the central Malatya region, where the Kürecik air base is located, which houses a NATO early-warning radar system manned by U.S. troops that can detect Iranian missile launches.

Authorities have not disclosed the intended target of the third missile, but an explosion was heard overnight near the Incirlik Air Base in the southern province of Adana. The base hosts U.S. forces along with Turkish and allied personnel. Ankara has said Washington has not used Incirlik in its air operations against Iran alongside Israel.

Turkish authorities have lodged diplomatic protests with Tehran after each missile incident while maintaining contact to clarify what happened.

Iranian officials have insisted that they did not fire at Türkiye, although the available data shows that the missiles came from Iran, the Turkish foreign minister said on Saturday.

Türkiye, which shares a border with Iran and fields NATO’s second-largest army, has stressed that it does not want to be drawn into the war between Iran, Israel and the U.S.

Referring to the "terror-free Türkiye" initiative launched 17 months ago to end PKK terrorism, Erdoğan said they have overcome many critical thresholds smoothly.

"With the resolution of the issue in northern Syria through reconciliation, our security concerns have eased, (and) Syria's territorial integrity has been preserved," he said. "Our goal is to bring this beneficial process we have started to a safe conclusion, taking into account the bloody scenarios that are sought to be staged in our region."

Türkiye’s efforts to end PKK violence that has killed more than 50,000 people and to remove the divisions fostered by the terrorist group over four decades entered a new stage last month.

Türkiye is working to bring a permanent end to PKK terrorism with its "terror-free Türkiye” initiative, first proposed in October 2024 by government ally Devlet Bahçeli, who extended an olive branch to the PKK’s jailed ringleader, Abdullah Öcalan, if he urged the organization to lay down its arms.

After the group announced last year that it would dissolve itself in response to Öcalan’s appeal, a parliamentary committee approved a report recommending legislation to accelerate the process.

The report will serve as a guide for Parliament in drafting legislation and is intended to facilitate the process once authorities confirm that the PKK has fully abandoned its armed activities.

A cross-party parliamentary commission recently published a report to prepare the legal groundwork for the process and support plans to reintegrate former PKK members. Authorities have said Parliament would evaluate the report after Eid, and a draft legislation would be announced by the end of April.

Erdoğan also mentioned that in a period when global uncertainty is increasing, Türkiye managed to grow its economy by 3.6% last year, with Türkiye becoming the third fastest-growing country among Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) nations in 2025.