About us
  |  
Advertising
  |  
Contact
  |  
Get Home Delivery
  |  
RSS
  |  
Share on your site
  |  
MULTIMEDIA
May 27, 2012
 
 
 
 
 
 

Davutoğlu: Democratization boosts Turkey’s clout in Mideast

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu was received by Egyptian head of state Hosni Mubarak upon his arrival in Sharm el-Sheikh yesterday. He then flew to Cairo with his Egyptian counterpart, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, for talks as part of the Memorandum for a Framework for Turkish-Egyptian Strategic Dialogue.
3 March 2010 / AYŞE KARABAT, SHARM EL-SHEIK
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has praised Turkey’s role in the Middle East, saying Ankara’s increasing clout is a result of its democratization and growing economic might.

Davutoğlu, speaking to a group of reporters aboard a plane en route to Egypt late on Monday, said Turkey is now a country creating balances in Middle Eastern politics. Davutoğlu, a respected professor of international relations, explained that the steps the government has taken in the direction of further democratization are the main reason why Turkey is an effective actor in the region.

“In the past, those who could speak Russian were considered communist and thus seen as a threat. The number of public officials who can speak Armenian or Arabic is also small,” Davutoğlu said. “Today, we have removed such perceptions. The more we democratize, the more confident we get.”

Under the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government, which came to power in 2002, Turkey took steps to revamp its once ignored relations with its Middle Eastern neighbors. It has mediated peace talks between Syria and Israel, is seeking a peaceful settlement to an international row over Iran’s nuclear program and has strongly criticized Israel for its policy toward the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip. The shift in foreign policy has been accompanied by drastic measures to limit the military’s influence in political life and expand rights for Kurds and non-Muslim minorities at home.

Davutoğlu said Egypt considered the issue of Hamas to be a matter of security and a domestic threat, emphasizing that the way a country defines its internal threats may narrow its room for maneuver in its foreign policy. Unlike Egypt, Turkey says dialogue with the radical Palestinian group is necessary to help peace efforts in Palestine.

According to the foreign minister, the visa problem which Turks have to deal with while traveling to European countries is also a legacy of Turkey’s undemocratic past. “Do you know when the Europeans began asking for visas? On Oct. 5, 1980,” Davutoğlu said, just weeks after a military coup on Sept. 12. “Before that time, only a few European countries required that Turkish nationals obtain a visa. This is the treatment an undemocratic country would get.”

But due to the progress it has made in democratization, Turkey now demands that the European Union lift visa requirements altogether, not just ease them, he continued.

Davutoğlu is visiting Egypt for talks as part of the Memorandum for a Framework for Turkish-Egyptian Strategic Dialogue, which was signed in the autumn of 2007. He had a one-hour meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Sharm el-Sheik before flying to Cairo. He flew to Cairo with his Egyptian counterpart, Ahmed Aboul Gheit.

Mubarak told Davutoğlu that the number of Turkish businessmen operating in Egypt is increasing and said marine links between Turkey and Egypt must also be improved. The two also discussed the situation in Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Davutoğlu said Turkey appreciated Egypt’s efforts to ease disagreements between rival Palestinian groups and said Turkey was ready to offer its help if needed. They discussed the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts and ways to overcome the deadlock.
 
Weather
City>>
ISTANBUL
Today Mon Tue
14C°
22C°
15C°
23C°
15C°
22C°
 

© Feza Gazetecilik A.Ş. 2007, Ahmet Taner Kışlalı Cad. No: 6, Bahçelievler - İstanbul 34194 Turkey, +90 (212) 454 1454, +90 (212) 454 1497(fax)