Former deputy PM Babacan applies to launch party

Former Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan has announced he will launch his party at a meeting on March 11 in the Turkish capital Ankara, months after he resigned from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

An application for the establishment of the party was submitted to the Interior Ministry on March 9.

The name of the party is believed to be Democracy and Progress Party, with the abbreviation "DEVA." Deva, in Turkish, means remedy.

"Today's need is to make Turkey a livable country for its citizens, grounded on universal values reviving fundamental principles of freedoms, democracy and rule of law. It's not possible to realize this with the current government. It's impossible to bring prosperity to this country through this political understanding," Babacan told the private broadcaster Fox TV on March 9.

Babacan was a member of the AKP cabinets between 2002 and 2015. His last position was deputy prime minister responsible of the economy.

A politics of fear is dominating Turkish politics, he said, stressing that this approach stands as the main problem in front of planning the future for a more developed country.

"We will outline our principles on [March 11]. The first chapter is about freedom of the press. In the absence of media freedom, one cannot speak up about the problems. It's not possible for a country to resolve its problems if it cannot discuss them," he said.

On a question about how he would conduct his political struggle against his former boss, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Babacan said his focus is on the problems of Turkey and not individuals.

"It's true that we will be rivals but we are going to be the rival of all political parties. Our target is not only that party and its...