'Turkey has no imperialist ambitions'

Turkey brings peace and safety to all environments without harboring any imperialist ambitions, Turkey's Justice Minister said Wednesday.

Speaking at a conference organized by the Union of European Turkish Democrats (UETD) in Denmark's capital Copenhagen, Abdulhamit Gül said that in the last 15 years, Turkey had become a self-confident leading nation both globally and regionally in terms of its economy, politics and foreign policy.

Gül criticized Western countries' view of Turkey as "a good market" which was "breathing but not leading".

"Turkey should not die but should also not develop. That was the approach [to Turkey]. Let Turkey lie down on the bed as a 'sick man'. Use it as a market. Let it breathe without allowing it to stand up to lead," Gül said, adding that Turkey's recent growth disturbed those same countries.

"Turkey's embracing friendly discourse, its powerful language will echo all around the world."

Gül said Turkey never has imperialist ambitions "wherever we are".

"We only bring peace and safety to all environments."