defence and industry on a temporary basis. In response to the German Parliament's decision, Prime Minister Yıldırım made a statement criticising Germany and claiming that there was no past historical event that the Turkish people are ashamed of. He also called the decision 'faulty' and reiterated that Turkey would not accept its legitimacy. Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş branded the actions of the German Parliament as 'distorted and baseless', calling it a 'historical mistake.' and warning that it was not compliant with Turkey-Germany relations. In response, Merkel reiterated that the relations between Germany and Turkey remained strong. Russia As part of the new government's program, Yıldırım announced plans to keep open channels for mutual dialogue with Russia in an attempt to normalise relations on the basis of common interests. Turkish relations with Russia deteriorated sharply in November 2015 after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet claiming that it had violated Turkish Airspace. The deterioration in relations also caused economic and trade relations between the two countries to decline. It was expected that 'normalisation' of economic relations with Russia would be one of the most important responsibilities of the new government. In response to the appointment of Yıldırım as Prime Minister, the Deputy President of the Federation Council Foreign Policy Committee Vladimir Cabarov claimed that a new Prime Minister would not result in any changes to Turkey-Russia relations, claiming that Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was effectively the main policy-maker in Turkey and that his past actions had 'burnt all bridges' with Russia. He also referred to Yıldırım's close relations with Erdoğan and claimed that any attempts to reconcile with Russia would not be initiated at Yıldırım's own accord. Personal life Yıldırım has been married to retired teacher Semiha Yıldırım since 1976 and has three children, Erkan, Ahmet and Baran. A primary school established by their three children in Çekmeköy, İstanbul was named after his wife, 'Öğretmen Semiha Yıldırım İlkokulu', and was opened on 24 November 2012. Semiha Yıldırım is also active in the Justice and Development Party, having been seen at the establishment of the government's 'Soul Mountain' (Gönül Dağı) Project on 17 May 2016 sitting next to President Erdoğan's wife Emine Erdoğan. He speaks Turkish, English and French. On 21 October 2022, he was hospitalized at a Baku hospital after being injured in a road accident while visiting Azerbaijan. Awards and honours Yıldırım has been awarded Honorary doctorates by a