UNITED NATIONS - Turkey welcomed the joint declaration adopted at Annapolis summit, said Ambassador Baki Ilkin, Turkey`s permanent representative to the United Nations.
Ilkin, who took the floor at a meeting at UN General Assembly that discussed situation in the Middle East, said that Turkey was satisfied with promises given by Israel and Palestine regarding to reach a peace deal by end-2008 and fulfill their obligations within the framework of a road map.
Ilkin said that the process, aiming to reach a two-state solution, was encouraging and that the parties should make altruistic and difficult decisions.
Ilkin added that nothing could replace peace and the consequences of a failure would be terrifying.
He also called on Israel to revise its practices in Gaza Strip and urged Palestinians to eliminate extremist groups among them.
Recalling the agreement signed by the two parties in Ankara to establish an industrial zone in West Bank, which will provide employment opportunities for Palestinians, Ilkin reaffirmed Turkey`s pledge to contribute to confidence-building process between Israel and Palestine.