ISTANBUL
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Thursday delivered a speech at an international conference in Istanbul on the occasion of centennial anniversary of the the Balkan Wars.
"It is time for the Balkans to distance itself from fragmented identities and start solving its problems itself. The solution lays with the peoples of the region. The joint cultures of the Balkan peoples should be utilized to overcome disagreements between politicians," Davutoglu told the conference, "From Balkan Wars to Balkan Peace."
Davutoglu said lessons from sufferings of the Balkan Wars should set a guide to avoid similar tragedies in the 21st century, adding that the Balkans should leave behind ideological, ethnic and religious differences.
"Then Balkans will be a basin of peace, security and stability with joint a culture of songs, concepts, food and urban life. We need to exert efforts to create a Balkan axis within Europe where people will leave a cultural plurality and mutual respect," Davutoglu said.
Davutoglu said Balkan countries should establish regional dialogue mechanisms as well as devise ways for consultation with international bodies such as the United Nations and NATO.
"The vast cultural and lingual diversity in such a small area should be seen as a great source of dynamism. What we need to do is to look at the future through a new window by uniting around those differences in joint values, culture and experiences."
Turkey ready to extend any support for peace in Balkans
Davutoglu has said Turkey was ready for joint efforts to maintain lasting peace and stability in the Balkans.
"To prevent sufferings from happening once again in the Balkans, we are ready to extend any support in NATO, European Union and United Nations to Balkan countries to help them work shoulder to shoulder to make sure that a golden era of the Balkans begins," Davutoglu told a joint press appearance with his Albanian, Macedonian and Montenegrin counterparts after an international conference in Istanbul on ""From Balkan Wars to Balkan Peace."
Davutoglu said Turkey actively cooperated with all regional countries to help facilitate a common ground for a lasting peace in the Balkans "because the Balkans really deserves peace after all the suffering it endured."
"We have to make sure that the Balkans will not see new Karadzics or Mladics emerging from any group whatsoever. We have to guarantee that such things will not happen again in our region," he said.
Also speaking at the press conference, Macedonian Foreign Minister Nikola Poposki said the Balkans were passing through an integration process which he said upheld democratization and the rule of law as its key values.
"We are building a joint culture in our region on the basis of mutual respect and understanding," Poposki said.
Turkish fm meets with his Macedonian counterpart
Davutoglu met with his Macedonian counterpart Nikola Poposki in Hilton Hotel in Istanbul on Thursday.
