‘THE WINNER OF DAVOS’

AzerNews Weekly
Feb 4 2009
Azerbaijan

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan`s tough stance against
Israel`s military action in Gaza voiced at the World Economic Forum
in Davos, Switzerland last week has been widely acclaimed in the
Islamic world.

A row was sparked as Erdogan clashed with Israeli President Shimon
Peres during discussions on the situation in the Gaza Strip and
subsequently left the event after a heated exchange.

Addressing the five-day forum, Peres staunchly defended Tel-Aviv`s
latest military action. He claimed Hamas was to blame for the
outbreak of violence in the Middle East and that there was no other
way out. "If 100 rockets were fired upon Istanbul every day, what
would you do?" he queried.

The Israeli leader`s emotion-filled statement was applauded by a group
of participants. The Turkish premier, who witnessed such a reaction,
blamed those welcoming the utterances for a bias.

Erdogan tried to respond to President Peres, but the host`s frequently
interjecting his reply angered him. Erdogan, who was able to speak
for only 12 minutes, compared to Peres`s 25 minutes, said the rules
of the forum had been violated.

In response to the Israeli president, who spoke in a high tone, Erdogan
said: "Honorable Mr. Peres, you are older than me. You are talking
very loud, which suggests a psychology of being guilty. You know
quite well how to kill. You are killing children. And the whole world
witnessed you kill innocent people. I know some ministers in Israel
who said when Israeli tanks entered Gaza that they felt very happy."

Further, Erdogan cited a quote from the Jewish holy book, the
Torah. Article 6 of the book calls on Jews "not to kill."

In conclusion, the Turkish premier said, "Davos is over for me. I am
not coming here again," and left the premises.

The Turkish Prime Minister`s spouse, Emine Erdogan, left the room
crying. She told reporters afterwards that her husband`s address had
been interrupted, while Peres`s remarks were completely based on lies.

Erdogan told a news conference that his criticism did not target the
Jewish people and he had only asserted that the Israeli government`s
actions committed in Gaza were a crime against humanity.

After the clash, the Israeli leader reportedly called Erdogan and
extended an apology. He noted that he was very disappointed with the
incident, claiming that he was speaking loud only because his voice
could not be heard well in the room. Peres also emphasized that Israel
and Turkey were maintaining strong bonds and expressed hope that the
incident would not tarnish them.

However, a spokesperson for the Israeli president refuted reports
that Peres had apologized to Erdogan. "They talked over the phone,
and it was a positive conversation. But, despite what the Turkish
media reported, our president was not apologizing."

The Israeli leader, himself, voiced hope that the bickering would
not have any bitter ramifications.

"We don`t want a conflict with Turkey, we have a conflict with
Palestinians," news agencies quoted him as saying in Davos.

"I don`t see either a personal or state problem here. Our relations
can stay as they are. My respect [for Erdogan] remains unchanged. That
was an exchange of opinions, and opinions are just opinions."

Erdogan, who returned home late that day was greeted in Turkey as a
hero. About 5,000 people gathered outside the airport and applauded
him upon arrival. The supporters of the Turkish premier were holding
the flags of Turkey and Palestine as well as posters backing the stance
he expressed in Davos. They called Erdogan "the winner of Davos."

Addressing the crowd, Erdogan said he had been insulted during the
forum in the Swiss city.

Erdogan`s leaving the event after a strongly worded debate with
the Israeli president has been widely praised in Gaza. A rally was
held Friday in the Gaza Strip to show support to the Turkish head of
government, the Turkish Zaman newspaper quoted the Hamas spokesman,
Fawzi Barhoum, as saying.

Hamas has lauded Erdogan`s cause. "We bow to the courageous move
by Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan who defended in Davos the victims
of the Zionist battle targeting our children and women," it said in
a statement.

Hamas added that it considered Erdogan`s leaving the room as support
for those who have been subjected to a massacre by the Zionists.

The Mayor of Tehran, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has awarded Erdogan
with an "honorary citizen" title due to his courageous move taken in
Davos, CNN Turk TV channel reported. Ghalibaf said he saw the Turkish
people as a benefactor of the Palestinians.

Iranian President Ahmadinejad has also thanked the Turkish premier. He
said Erdogan was advocating for the sentiments of not only the Turkish
people but also the nations of the entire region and the world.

It is noteworthy that the Erdogan-Peres discussions were moderated by
Washington Post editor David Ignatius, an ethnic Armenian US citizen
who is well known in the Middle East as a supporter of Israel.

According to the Turkish media, Ignatius was born to an ethnic
Armenian family who moved to the U.S. in 1920. The journalist, who
maintains close ties with the Armenian lobby in the U.S., is known
for his stories critical of Erdogan and Turkey, and in particular of
Ankara`s foreign policy.

Ignatius is also the author of a novel that was at the core of the
Body of Lies film starring Leonardo di Caprio and Russel Crow, the
most remarkable scene of which is a terror act perpetrated at the
Incirlik military base in Adana, Turkey.

Turkey was one of the first countries to decisively condemn
Israel`s military operations in the Gaza Strip and began undertaking
initiatives to assist the Palestinian population. Therefore, Erdogan`s
harshly-worded statement cannot be only linked to the moderator`s
behavior, which was rather crude. Relations between Israel and Turkey
are currently experiencing tough times compared to the period of joint
projects carried out in the 1990s. The reason for the coolness is not
merely the latest Gaza developments. Rather, Ankara`s policy toward
Tel-Aviv cooled down after the Party of Justice and Development came
to power in this country in 2002. The Turkish government, headed
by the party`s chairman, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, started pursuing
a political course aimed at a more active rapprochement with the
rest of the Islamic world. Certainly, this couldn`t but pre-define a
change in its attitude toward Israel, in particular, after the latest
developments in the Middle East. It is common knowledge that Israel`s
actions as early as the second Lebanon war in 2006 drew fire from
Turkey. Then, the human rights commission of the Turkish parliament
labeled Israel`s military action in Lebanon as "state terror and
genocide." Moreover, all lawmakers representing the ruling party
seceded from the inter-parliamentary group of friendship with Israel
to condemn Tel-Aviv`s actions. MPs from the opposition People`s and
Republican Party followed suit.

As for the tough stance taken by the Turkish premier in Davos, this
is undoubtedly another indication of Ankara`s aspiration to play an
important role in the Islamic world, analysts say. The point is that
Turkey has its own interests in finding a solution to the Palestine
conflict, as it has been striving to act as a regional powerhouse in
the Middle East. Turkish officials insist on the need to follow the
"road map" and UN resolutions in dealing with issues concerning a
solution to the many-decade-long conflict. Turkey remains committed
to the idea of a "two-state solution." On the other hand, Turkey
has reaffirmed that its military-strategic partnership with Israel
does not imply that it is ready to "sacrifice" its relations with
other Muslim nations. Thus, such cooperation, which mainly envisions
Israel`s arms supplies to Turkey, does not guarantee Ankara`s support
for Israel`s policies in the Middle East.

As for Israel, this country deems it critical to maintain good
relations with Turkey, which has considerably strengthened its clout
in the Muslim world and could be a connecting bridge for forging ties
with moderate Islamic governments. Israel is working hard to rebuild
its relations with Turkey to the greatest extent and to return them
to their previous level.

It is likely that any worsening of relations with Turkey would lead
to the Jewish state`s isolation in the Middle East and it appears
that Israel knows this well. Even David Ben-Gurion, a founder of
the Israeli state and its first prime minister, had set out a goal
of achieving a maximum rapprochement with non-Arab Muslim countries
in the region, thus playing the card of differentiating between the
Arab and non-Arab states to ensure that Israel would not face pressure
from all Islamic countries at once. This strategy allowed Tel-Aviv to
establish close relations with Ankara, particularly in the military
field, which was and still is benefiting the Turkish army.

Moreover, the Israeli side has assured Turkey of support in its bid for
European Union membership. Israel also demonstrates understanding of
Ankara`s position regarding Turkey-Armenia relations that have been
marred by history-long tension. Israel is even ready to assist in
lifting the economic isolation of the unrecognized Turkish Republic
of Northern Cyprus. Therefore, the Israeli leader`s statement that
the Davos incident would not tarnish bilateral relations and that
his country does not want a conflict with Turkey should be considered
sincere.