ANKARA - ''It should be known that my visits to Israel and Palestine took place as a requirement of historical, national, humanitarian and regional obligations, not because others wanted it,'' Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday.
Making a keynote speech at the group meeting of his Justice & Development Party (AKP), Erdogan said his visits to Palestine and Israel took place in a schedule that was planned earlier, aiming to ease Israeli-Palestinian problem, and encourage the momentum of the peace.
''This is not a newly planned visit,'' Erdogan said, stating that he went to the region as Turkish people demanded to take initiatives in the region, after the demise of Arafat.
Erdogan said Turkey's foreign policy is dictated by the requirements of its history and geography, and stated that, ''the developments in economic area not only served to the domestic stability, but also strengthened Turkey's power and reliability in international arena.''
Prime Minister Erdogan said neighboring countries was in the first chain of Turkey's foreign policy perspective.
Recalling that visits were paid to all neighboring countries except Iraq, Erdogan said 8th meeting of countries neighboring Iraq was held in Istanbul within this scope.
Erdogan said this initiative, aiming at gathering neighboring countries on a joint platform and ensuring regional stability, was also recognized by the UN. He said, ''besides the UN, representatives from Arab League, OIC, and EU attended the meeting.''
Erdogan said the second chain was formed by countries with which Turkey's historical and cultural ties were strong.
''We have traveled to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Albania and Afghanistan within this framework,'' Erdogan said, stating that, ''our visit to Palestine should also be assessed within this scope.''
''During the visit to Palestine, we have seen that Palestine is like an open prison. It should not be left like this. In a world where freedoms are mentioned, parliamentarians should not remain indifferent. Who else will take initiatives if we do not? We should make steps and talk to the parties sincerely. We should exert all kinds of efforts both on the UN and other countries. This is our historical responsibility,'' Erdogan emphasized.