Tunisian foreign minister's first trip overseas will be to Turkey and this is symbolically important, says Davutoglu

ANKARA (A.A) - January 4, 2012 - Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Wednesday that the Tunisian foreign minister's first trip overseas will be to Turkey and that this trip was symbolically important. Speaking to the AA on his expectations in 2012, Davutoglu said that it was normal for the transformation taking place as part of the Arab Spring to be painful. "The pains are normal. We are not going through an easy period during the Arab Spring. There will be ups and downs. What is crucial is for the peoples to go to the ballot boxes and display the will of the peoples," Davutoglu underlined. In 2011, Turkey was a leading force that supported the North African countries, all the way from Egypt to Morocco, and as a country that was on the side of peoples demanding freedom and democracy, Davutoglu said. Turkey will continue to be a leading force. 2012 will be a painful year. Especially in Syria, our demands and advices were disregarded. The administration of Bashar al-Assad preferred to fight against its own people. At a time when all Arab peoples and regional peoples demanded democracy, al-Bashar chose to act against the winds. There is a turbulence in Syria at the moment. We believe that the people of Syria have the right to choose their own leaders as in Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco and Libya, Davutoglu said. (more)