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Twitter  Turkish President Abdullah Gul (R) meets with head of the Muslim Brotherhood Mohamed Badie and other opposition representative in Cairo. AFP photo. |
A strong army is no guarantee for a strong country, Turkey’s president told Egypt’s new military rulers during a critical trip that came less than a month after President Hosni Mubarak was forced to step down following widespread protests.
“A strong army is no guarantee for a strong country. A strong country lies on a sound democratic system that considers only the will of the people,” Gül told Hussein Tantawi, head of the Supreme Military Council, according to the diplomatic sources speaking with the Hürriyet Daily News.
“The council should aim a strong Egypt,” said the president, making a strong emphasis on democracy.
Egypt’s Supreme Military Council took over the administration after the resignation of Mubarak, who ruled the country for more than three decades until he stepped down Feb. 11. The council earlier announced it would hold democratic elections in Egypt.
“The president spoke with everyone. It was quite a tight program,” said a senior Turkish diplomat, who wished to remain anonymous.
Gül arrived in Cairo as Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq, appointed prime minister by Mubarak in his final days in office before he was ousted, resigned and a former transport minister was picked to appoint a new government.
"Egypt is standing on a sharp knife in this transition process. The country should be able to pass through this process without going under the autocracy of the army and without distancing itself from Western values. I think that was the message Turkey conveyed to Egyptian groups," Recep Boztemir, of the Middle East Technical University, told the Daily News.
"It is a reality that Turkey is a country in the region where Islam and democracy co-exist. Since the 1970s, Turkey has been able to adapt Islam to the political system. Turkey has an authentic place in this regard. A democracy that will be adopted by Egypt in the region will also benefit Turkey," he said.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was earlier scheduled to visit Egypt, however, the uprising in this country made the Turkish premier unable to make an official visit.
Erdoğan’s open criticism of Mubarak’s administration and his repeated calls for his removal from office by listening to his people’s demands made it impossible for Erdoğan to visit Cairo. Diplomatic sources said the prime minister currently cannot visit the country as he would have no counterpart in this transition process.
Gül, whose visit comes after Ankara’s several telephone conversations with the Obama administration and who was accompanied by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, held talks with a wide range of political groups in Egypt. He met with the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Badie, as well as the political reform campaigner opposition leader Mohamed ElBaradei.
“We convey the same message to every party: Everyone should work in unity for the transition process to take place healthily. Every party should listen to the people,” said the Turkish diplomat when asked about the president’s messages to Muslim Brotherhood.
“Every party should channel the country’s internal dynamics for the welfare of the people. That was also the message conveyed to Tunisia,” the diplomat stated.
Turkey, which has become a major player in the Middle East, is shown as a role model for the countries in the region facing rising demands from their peoples.
“Turkey is a country well acquainted with the region’s dynamics better than the United States. Turkey’s role is recognized by both the region and Washington,” Bahadır Dinçer, Middle East expert of Ankara-based think tank USAK, told the Daily News.
He said Obama’s frequent telephone calls to the Turkish government demonstrated Washington valued Turkey’s views regarding the region and it wanted to utilize the Turkish experience to its benefit.
“Turkey is not developing policies just because the United States wants her to do so. Turkey’s reasonable policies might be inspiring Washington,” said Dinçer.
Boztemur said he did not believe Washington asked Turkey to play a role in Egypt’s transition process. "The U.S. has many channels for access to Egypt. Some 40,000 members of the Egyptian army have been trained in the U.S.," he said.
Turkish experience
Gül also gave an account of Turkish experience to Egyptian leadership and groups, explaining the past problems in Turkey’s democracy.
“Egypt must emerge stronger out of this process,” Gül told them, according to diplomatic sources, while many groups emphasized that the Turkish model based on a democratic system and rule of law was a source of inspiration for Egypt.
The Turkish military toppled four governments since 1960 and European Union-led reforms aim at curbing the military influence in the country.
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