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Erdogan at Davos forum
Photo: AP
Netanyahu. Not too sad
Photo: AP

Erdogan 'saddened' by election results

Turkish PM says results of elections 'paint a very dark picture' of Israel but agrees to continue mediating Mideast peace talks. Meanwhile the Israeli ambassador to Ankara has been summoned to clarify remarks made by IDF general regarding massacre of Armenians

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in an interview with Reuters and two Turkish newspapers late on Friday, said the results of the Israeli elections this week had "painted a very dark picture" for the future of Middle East peace.

 

However Turkey's fierce censure of Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip will not end its role as a peace mediator in the region, Tayyip Erdogan said.

 

Israel's military campaign triggered protests from Turkey that culminated in a shouting match between Erdogan and President Shimon Peres at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

 

Some diplomats and analysts say Turkey's role as a mediator in the Middle East, and in particular as a neutral negotiator between Israel and Syria, suffered short-term damage because of Erdogan's fierce criticism of Israel and defense of Hamas.

 

"I don't think that way... Turkey is a strong country that has a (unique) international position," said Erdogan, speaking on his plane while returning to Ankara from a campaign trip to Sivas.

 

"We were not the ones who wanted this negotiations role. In negotiations between Syria and Israel both countries wanted Turkey to be the mediator, that is why we took part in it. The same happened with the Israeli and Pakistani talks."

 

He said critics misunderstood Turkish foreign policy if they thought the government was siding with Hamas or was against Israel. Turkey wanted peace in the region and was defending the helpless, in this case the civilians in Gaza, he said.

 

He said the ruling AK Party, which has roots in political Islam, had restored Turkey's influence in the world and it was only natural that Turkey should use its newfound strength to help solve crises from the Caucasus to the Middle East.

 

Erdogan received a hero's welcome in Turkey and praise in the Arab world after his outburst in Davos, where he accused Israel of "knowing very well how to kill", but raised eyebrows among Western diplomats who asked whether Turkey was turning away from the West.

 

'Jews should fight Islamophobia'

Erdogan urged the next Israeli government to look at how it conducted policies and actions towards the Palestinians and to lift what he called an embargo on the Palestinians. He said Israel's tough stance against the Palestinians was failing.

 

"Unfortunately we have seen that the (Israeli) people have voted for these (rightist) parties and that makes me a bit sad," Erdogan said of the Israeli election result. "Unfortunately the election has painted a very dark picture."

 

"With the ceasefire the embargo should be lifted. The Palestinian people should be freed from an open-air prison they are living in right now, this is against human rights," he said.

 

In a phone call expected soon with US President Barack Obama, Erdogan said he would urge him to take a different approach to the Middle East than the Bush administration.

 

"I am expecting President Obama to be the voice of the voiceless and the protector of the unprotected," he said.

 

Erdogan again defended his criticism of Israeli authorities. "We have to distinguish between two things – the Israeli people and the Israeli government. I say the same to my people. I see anti-Semitism as a crime against humanity," Erdogan said.

 

"I have also said that while anti-Semitism is a crime against humanity, Islamophobia is also a crime against humanity. I have said that the Jewish people should take part in fighting this kind of prejudice," he said.

 

Israeli ambassador summoned

Meanwhile Turkey's foreign ministry has protested to Israel over a senior Israeli general's remarks criticizing Turkey. The ministry says it summoned Israeli Ambassador Gabby Levy on Saturday to

discuss comments made Feb. 10 by Israel's Maj. Gen. Avi Mizrahi.

 

Turkish media says the Israeli general accused Turkey of massacring Armenians, oppressing Kurds and occupying Cyprus. Turkey's military says the remarks "cannot be accepted under any condition" and "can harm national interests between the two countries."

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Saturday afternoon that Ambassador Levy was been summoned by the Turkish Foreign Ministry to discuss Mizrachi's remarks, which were apparently in response to Erdogan's actions at Davos.

 


פרסום ראשון: 02.14.09, 16:34
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