Davutoglu expresses Turkey's eagerness for regional economic integration

Turkey seeks not only economic cooperation but economic integration with Arab countries, especially Syria, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said yesterday. Speaking at a meeting of foreign ministers of the Turkish-Arabic Forum in Damascus, Davutoglu said Turkey has strong cooperation mechanisms with Arab countries. "Turkey is also striving to boost its ties with North African and sub-Saharan African countries," he said. "We decided to inaugurate 10 new Turkish embassies in those regions. We will improve relations with countries of the African continent represented in the Arab League." Davutoglu also said Turkey supports a solution to the Cyprus issue under UN parameters, and called on Arab countries to improve cooperation with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). Touching on the Palestinian issue, Davutoglu said Turkey sees this problem as one of its own, urging a compromise among rival Palestinian groups. Expressing Turkey's determination to continue to develop its ties with Arab countries, Davutoglu said Turkey's relations with the European Union and Arab countries don't compete with each other. Also speaking at the meeting, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem praised Turkey's efforts to solve the Arab-Israeli problem. Muallem said Turkey is trying to boost relations with both Syria and Iraq in every area, adding that Turkey's position on Israel's Gaza offensive and its mediating role in indirect Syrian-Israeli talks are important for the region. Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa said the meeting was very fruitful, adding that representatives of participating countries Syria, Iraq, Libya, Qatar, Sudan and Somalia want to boost their ties with Turkey. Moussa said workshops would be held in various areas and that Turkey would host workshops on culture and science. Moussa said at a meeting in Cairo in January that an action plan would be drawn up to boost Turkish-Arab relations. He also said a Turkish-Arab Forum would be held in June.