We can not have a 'wait and see' approach on Syria, says Turkish FM Davutoglu

WASHINGTON (A.A) - February 14, 2012 - Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Monday that a real humanitarian tragedy was taking place in Syria. Speaking at a joint press conference with the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Washington on Monday, Ahmet Davutoglu said that, after a veto by Russia and China at the UN Security Council, the international community and regional partners could not have a 'wait and see' approach on Syria. Turkish-U.S. relations today are a model partnership as U.S. President Barack Obama has defined them. We want our relations with the U.S. to be a model partnership not only in the security field but also the economic arena, Davutoglu stressed. There are many issues that Turkey and the U.S. share in NATO. Today, we went over the agenda of the NATO summit to take place in Chicago. Regional developments were on top of our agenda on Monday, Davutoglu said. The region is going through a process of change and is at a turning point. In such a geography, there is an economic crisis to the west of Turkey and a great political crisis to the south. Turkey is an island of stability, economic growth and prosperity. We have special relations with the U.S. and want to make positive contributions to the solution of problems surrounding us, Davutoglu noted. Syria happens to be the hottest issue in our region. Following painful days, successful changes and political elections took place in countries like Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Morocco. Just as the Syrian people, the other peoples in the region deserve to have similar rights, Davutoglu noted. We discussed with Secretary Clinton the political changes in North Africa and how we could assist countries like Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. We work with the U.S. shoulder to shoulder so we can achieve success in these countries. The demands of the regional peoples for the rule of law, freedom, democracy, accountability and transparency are all values defended by Turkey, Davutoglu said. Now, the Syrian people demand such rights. It is the right of the Syrian people to have a democratic political culture and atmosphere, Davutoglu emphasized. Last year, the Syrian people demanded such rights before violence began. Unfortunately, the Syrian regime applied violence against peaceful demonstrations. And today, there is a real humanitarian tragedy in Syria, Davutoglu underlined. Turkey pursued a three stage strategy in solving the Syrian crisis. The first stage involved a bilateral dialogue. We tried, last year, to convince the Syrian regime to listen to its people. Being unable to convince the Syrian regime, we began working with the Arab League on a regional initiative as a second stage, Davutoglu said. We appreciate all efforts of the Arab League and support all of their decisions. Despite such efforts, the UN Security Council could not approve the Arab League's plan due to vetoes, Davutoglu underlined. Due to the deadlock at the UN Security Council, the international community and regional partners can not be in an attitude of 'wait and see'. Attacks in Syria continue on a daily basis and pressure is applied on cities like Homs. We discussed in great depth all of these developments taking place in Syria with Secretary Clinton, Davutoglu said. We agreed on the need for a new initiative to provide food and medicines to the Syrian people. I held a discussion with the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Sunday and, as Turkey, we began an initiative with the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva. Secondly, there is a political dimension to the issue. The meeting to take place in Tunisia will provide an opportunity to display solidarity with the Syrian people and will give a strong and clear message to the Syrian regime that it can not continue violent acts against its people. We will closely monitor the developments with the U.S. and other partners and continue to defend the Syrian people, Davutoglu said. We also discussed the issue of Iran in great depth today. I was in Tehran last month. Iranians showed a will to resume talks on their nuclear program. We are in close contact with the EU High Commissioner for Foreign Policy Catherine Ashton on the matter, Davutoglu noted. It is crucial to begin the talks with a strong political will and good will and focus on a process that would yield a result. They need to get together and continue talks until the problem is solved rather than have a meeting followed by an other meeting after a year. We hope that a solution would be reached when parties concentrate on talks, Davutoglu said. We had a chance to talk about the Balkans, Cyprus, Caucasus and other issues as well, Davutoglu added.