Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson Airport served 94.5 million passengers in 2012, making it the highest-capacity airport in the world. Keeping this in mind gives one an idea of the sheer magnitude of the third Istanbul airport, which is being planned to accommodate 150 million passengers annually.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan personally broke ground for the new airport on June 7. Most of his speech on the occasion was reserved for criticizing and reprimanding those who oppose the project. According to Erdogan, certain groups in Turkey — under the pretext of protecting the environmen and preserving ecological systems — are trying to block the major steps his Justice and Development Party government is taking to promote growth for Turkey and its economy.

In speech at the ceremony, Erdogan referred to these groups as “deeply ignorant,” saying: “They don’t care about trees, saplings or flowers. These people think they are leftists, environmentalists, nationalists, anti-capitalist Muslims and the opposition. But they have never understood that they are being used as pawns in an anti-Turkey offensive.” 

Thus, Erdogan branded anyone questioning this project as “pawns of external forces.”