Erdogan to tour Arab Spring nations amidst regional showdown with Israel

Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has decided to expand the scope of a visit to Egypt and added Tunisia and Libya to the itinerary of his trip, which will take place next week at a time of increasing regional tensions. “The prime minister had already announced his intention to visit these countries. He eventually decided to visit the three countries where the Arab Spring took place,” diplomatic sources told yesterday. Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, Energy Minister Taner Yildiz, Economy Minister Zafer Çaglayan, Transportation Minister Binali Yildirim and Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz were at a coordination meeting at the Foreign Ministry yesterday, reviewing preparations for Erdogan's visit to the three countries. Erdogan is scheduled to arrive in Cairo on the evening of Monday, Sept.12, and will proceed to Tunisia on Wednesday, where he will stay for a day, the same sources said. The prime minister will travel to Libya on Thursday and will return to Turkey later that day, the sources said. “In Egypt, we have many things to discuss. North Africa, the Middle East and the eastern Mediterranean are only some of these discussion topics. In all three countries, the main message to the counterparts will be the need to preserve stability during these transformations,” a senior diplomat said."If Israel persists with its current position, the Arab Spring will give rise to a strong opposition to Israel as well as the debate on authoritarian regimes," Davutoglu said.