Tweet
TURKISH FM SAYS MEASURES SHOULD BE TAKEN AGAINST RACISM UNDER ROOF OF OSCE
Anadolu Agency
Dec 6 2011
Turkey
VILNIUS (A.A) -December 6, 2011 -Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu said on Tuesday [6 December] that measures should be taken
against racism under the roof of the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
There has been an escalation in racism in Europe, Davutoglu said in
his speech at the 18th Ministerial Council of the OSCE in Lithuania.
"Turkey remains committed to contribute to the peaceful resolution
of the protracted conflicts in the OSCE region on the basis of unity,
territorial integrity and sovereignty," he said.
"A number of initiatives taken by the Co-Chairs of the Minsk Group
in order to give a boost to the settlement process of the Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict have so far not produced the long awaited result.
While recognizing these commendable initiatives we believe that the
work of the Minsk Group needs to be reinvigorated with the active
contributions of the members of the Group to the settlement process,"
he said.
Davutoglu said, "the Geneva discussions constitute a comprehensive
framework for addressing the conflicts in Georgia. We commend the
efforts of the OSCE, as one of the Co-Chairs of the process, towards
helping raise the standard of life of the local population by ensuring
their access to the basic needs. Nevertheless, sustained efforts are
needed for a lasting political settlement."
"We are pleased to observe that the participating States in the Balkans
are making strong progress both towards Euro-Atlantic integration and
towards regional reconciliation. We believe that the OSCE has more
to offer in this regard, including through its outreach capacity to
local populations as a trusted and impartial international partner
with a clear set of norms and principles," he said.
Davutoglu said, "the main security concerns that our countries are
facing today are of a transnational character and ways of addressing
them has to be multi-dimensional. Terrorism is among the primary
threats to global security and effective cooperation and solidarity is
of crucial importance in combating this scourge. We welcome the new
strategic guidance for the work in this field. We have to ensure that
the OSCE's work should be comprehensive, inclusive and geographically
balanced."
"First of all, let me take this opportunity to express my thanks and
appreciation to German authorities in condemning firmly the inhuman
crimes of the recently uncovered terrorist cell that killed 9 innocent
people, 8 of whom to be of Turkish and one to be of Greek origin with
the motivation of far right extremism and hatred against foreigners.
We are confident that our German friends will bring all those
responsible before justice after a thorough investigation. During
my visit to Germany I met the families of the victims and later on
shared my thoughts and sentiments with German President Wulff, my
distinguished colleague Mr Westerwelle and other high level Federal
and State Officials."
"Having said this, I would like to dwell upon the growing racist,
xenophobic tendencies in a number of participating States in Europe.
The terrorist attacks with tragic consequences in Norway are a case
in point. We share the pain of the Norwegian people. The attacks
demonstrated that these threats are not only against migrant
communities living in different parts of Europe, but target the
population as a whole," he said.
Foreign Minister Davutoglu said, "with the existing economic and
financial difficulties, the socio-political environment unfortunately
resembles the aftermath of Great Depression of 1929 while racism
spreads with the increase in unemployment. This requires all of us, in
the OSCE area, to be vigilant and take appropriate measures to prevent
the radicalization of such extremist ideologies. Let us not forget
that this is a serious threat to our common values and to the security
and safety of individuals. I believe that this topic is relevant and
important in terms of the activities of our Organization. No one can
convince me that safety and well-being of migrants is less important
than that of the others. Therefore I would like to urge all my
colleagues, not to follow selective and hierarchical approaches in our
human dimension agenda. We all need to mobilize efforts to curb such
dangerous mentality which can be qualified as the scourge of our time.
Violent extremism and radicalization that leads to terrorism,
intolerance and discrimination motivated by ethno-nationalism, racism,
xenophobia and Islamophobia will need to be dealt with utmost urgency
and seriousness with the aim of putting in place effective measures."
"We have witnessed calls for reform, democracy and freedom followed
by changes of regime in some of the Mediterranean countries. The
historic chain of events across the region stands as a testimony
of the triumph of human dignity over autocratic regimes. These
democratic transformations have made the long-standing relations with
our Mediterranean Partners all the more relevant. While offering the
OSCE toolbox to our Mediterranean Partners we have to keep in mind
that a reciprocal approach is needed. Our dialogue and practical
cooperation should be a demand-driven process rather than imposing
what we may think appropriate, and be based solely on priorities of
the Partner countries and tailored to their specific needs," he said.
"Long-term security and stability in Afghanistan can only be built on
the basis of local ownership, strong regional cooperation and long-term
political commitment of the international community. The Istanbul and
Bonn Conferences for Afghanistan were a significant steps towards
this end. We appreciate the participation of the Secretary General
in these Conferences and consider it as a sign of the continued
engagement of the OSCE towards Afghanistan. In this regard, Turkey
welcomes the new OSCE projects across the three dimensions," he added.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Anadolu Agency
Dec 6 2011
Turkey
VILNIUS (A.A) -December 6, 2011 -Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu said on Tuesday [6 December] that measures should be taken
against racism under the roof of the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
There has been an escalation in racism in Europe, Davutoglu said in
his speech at the 18th Ministerial Council of the OSCE in Lithuania.
"Turkey remains committed to contribute to the peaceful resolution
of the protracted conflicts in the OSCE region on the basis of unity,
territorial integrity and sovereignty," he said.
"A number of initiatives taken by the Co-Chairs of the Minsk Group
in order to give a boost to the settlement process of the Nagornyy
Karabakh conflict have so far not produced the long awaited result.
While recognizing these commendable initiatives we believe that the
work of the Minsk Group needs to be reinvigorated with the active
contributions of the members of the Group to the settlement process,"
he said.
Davutoglu said, "the Geneva discussions constitute a comprehensive
framework for addressing the conflicts in Georgia. We commend the
efforts of the OSCE, as one of the Co-Chairs of the process, towards
helping raise the standard of life of the local population by ensuring
their access to the basic needs. Nevertheless, sustained efforts are
needed for a lasting political settlement."
"We are pleased to observe that the participating States in the Balkans
are making strong progress both towards Euro-Atlantic integration and
towards regional reconciliation. We believe that the OSCE has more
to offer in this regard, including through its outreach capacity to
local populations as a trusted and impartial international partner
with a clear set of norms and principles," he said.
Davutoglu said, "the main security concerns that our countries are
facing today are of a transnational character and ways of addressing
them has to be multi-dimensional. Terrorism is among the primary
threats to global security and effective cooperation and solidarity is
of crucial importance in combating this scourge. We welcome the new
strategic guidance for the work in this field. We have to ensure that
the OSCE's work should be comprehensive, inclusive and geographically
balanced."
"First of all, let me take this opportunity to express my thanks and
appreciation to German authorities in condemning firmly the inhuman
crimes of the recently uncovered terrorist cell that killed 9 innocent
people, 8 of whom to be of Turkish and one to be of Greek origin with
the motivation of far right extremism and hatred against foreigners.
We are confident that our German friends will bring all those
responsible before justice after a thorough investigation. During
my visit to Germany I met the families of the victims and later on
shared my thoughts and sentiments with German President Wulff, my
distinguished colleague Mr Westerwelle and other high level Federal
and State Officials."
"Having said this, I would like to dwell upon the growing racist,
xenophobic tendencies in a number of participating States in Europe.
The terrorist attacks with tragic consequences in Norway are a case
in point. We share the pain of the Norwegian people. The attacks
demonstrated that these threats are not only against migrant
communities living in different parts of Europe, but target the
population as a whole," he said.
Foreign Minister Davutoglu said, "with the existing economic and
financial difficulties, the socio-political environment unfortunately
resembles the aftermath of Great Depression of 1929 while racism
spreads with the increase in unemployment. This requires all of us, in
the OSCE area, to be vigilant and take appropriate measures to prevent
the radicalization of such extremist ideologies. Let us not forget
that this is a serious threat to our common values and to the security
and safety of individuals. I believe that this topic is relevant and
important in terms of the activities of our Organization. No one can
convince me that safety and well-being of migrants is less important
than that of the others. Therefore I would like to urge all my
colleagues, not to follow selective and hierarchical approaches in our
human dimension agenda. We all need to mobilize efforts to curb such
dangerous mentality which can be qualified as the scourge of our time.
Violent extremism and radicalization that leads to terrorism,
intolerance and discrimination motivated by ethno-nationalism, racism,
xenophobia and Islamophobia will need to be dealt with utmost urgency
and seriousness with the aim of putting in place effective measures."
"We have witnessed calls for reform, democracy and freedom followed
by changes of regime in some of the Mediterranean countries. The
historic chain of events across the region stands as a testimony
of the triumph of human dignity over autocratic regimes. These
democratic transformations have made the long-standing relations with
our Mediterranean Partners all the more relevant. While offering the
OSCE toolbox to our Mediterranean Partners we have to keep in mind
that a reciprocal approach is needed. Our dialogue and practical
cooperation should be a demand-driven process rather than imposing
what we may think appropriate, and be based solely on priorities of
the Partner countries and tailored to their specific needs," he said.
"Long-term security and stability in Afghanistan can only be built on
the basis of local ownership, strong regional cooperation and long-term
political commitment of the international community. The Istanbul and
Bonn Conferences for Afghanistan were a significant steps towards
this end. We appreciate the participation of the Secretary General
in these Conferences and consider it as a sign of the continued
engagement of the OSCE towards Afghanistan. In this regard, Turkey
welcomes the new OSCE projects across the three dimensions," he added.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress