BY ERDAL SAFAK
SABAH- The visit to be paid by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Sudan today has gotten little public attention. However, this visit constitutes the turning point of the Justice and Development Party's (AKP) openings. Turkey is now embracing the Arab world, which it turned its back on when it was founded in 1923. His visit to Sudan will rank among his top contacts abroad, because Erdogan will not only go to Sudan's capital of Khartoum, but also participate in the Arab League summit as an honorary guest. What's more, Turkey is participating among the members of Arab League in this summit with the title of `permanent guest.' The Turkish public isn't aware of the importance of this visit, but all the foreign capitals are looking at it. They know that this visit is a breaking point, or to put in better, the operation of mending broken bones. They're right, because Erdogan's joining the Arab League summit means the end of Turkey's 80-year policies amounting to `An Arab can't be a friend.'
Now, let's summarize the process of Turkey's move towards the Arab League. During Erdogan's visit to Cairo in January 2003 just after the AKP came to power, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul delivered Turkey's request to join the bloc to Arab League General Secretary Amr Moussa. This initiative got a lot of debate in the 22-member group. Those who opposed it listed many reasons, including Kemalist secularism and the special relationship between Turkey and Israel. Some of them even cited identity and culture by saying that Arabic will soon be a minority language in the Arab League. They're just like the Europeans who oppose Turkey's European Union membership for similar reasons. What's more, last year's Arab League summit in Algeria turned into a show of those opposed to Turkey. Even Libya leader Muammar Qaddafi insulted Turkey, and most of the participants welcomed his stance with laughter. However, this in now all gone. The process of approving a `memorandum of understanding' signed by Gul and Amr Moussa in September 2004 in New York was completed, and Erdogan was officially invited to the summit to be held in Khartoum. As I mentioned at the beginning, Turkey's Arab League membership can help solve such problems as the dialogue of civilizations and the consensus of religions, for the following reasons:
In addition to Turkey, NATO will also be represented in the Arab League (let's not forget that we're the only member of NATO from the Islamic world).
A bridge is being established between Turkey and the European Union and the Arab League. Now the EU and the Arab League will be able to produce common policies through Ankara.
With Turkey, the Arab League is embracing a Muslim world which established the first diplomatic relationship with Israel and which has sound relations of alliance with this country.
Who knows, maybe this development will open the way for former Israeli Prime Minister Simon Perez's vision: `One day, we'll participate in the Arab League and then it will become the Middle East League'.