Esra Tekin
26 November 2024•Update: 26 November 2024
ISTANBUL
Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Tuesday warned that humanity has never been so close to the “clash of civilizations.”
“We have never been this close to the clash of civilizations in real terms, there is a warning for humanity,” said Fidan during his address at the 10th UN Alliance of Civilization Initiative Meeting in Portugal.
Fidan underlined that achieving lasting global peace is impossible without resolving the problems in the Middle East.
He warned that hatred is intentionally being fueled, while extremism, xenophobia and racism are also on the rise worldwide, noting that Israel’s genocide against Palestinians is the “worst of these problems.”
“The more we keep silent, the more fragmentation in the international system will occur,” he added.
Stressing the civilian deaths in Gaza due to Israel’s relentless attacks for 14 months, Fidan said there will be no peace on the horizon as long as hunger, deprivation, and death continue in Gaza.
Expressing hope that the discussions at the forum would contribute to efforts to build peaceful, just and inclusive societies, Fidan said in the last 20 years, the forums in different parts of the world have been held, showing the demonstration of the commitment to unity in diversity.
Noting that the strength and richness of the alliance lie in respect for differences, he said this forum gathered to discuss the best ways to address urgent global issues.
Urging countries supporting civilizations and their values not to remain silent in the face of catastrophe in Gaza, Fidan said: “It is, therefore, no coincidence that the countries who want peace in Palestine are in this hall today, the ones who cannot even pronounce the cease-fire are in absence.
”The ones who lecture us on international law and universal values without respecting them are not in this hall today, because this is an alliance for peace. Peace is not just in the West, but in the rest of the world too, including Palestine,” said the Turkish foreign minister.
Stating that the answers to all acts of violence are “solidarity, equality and respect for equal dignity,” Fidan called for measures to fight direct and indirect forms of discrimination and attacks targeting places of worship and people based on belief and region.
”We will need to build resilience to discriminatory, exclusionary and intolerant policies and develop respect for the religious and cultural practices of others,” he added.
Any kind of discrimination, including Islamophobia and antisemitism is “'unacceptable” and “must be condemned,” said Fidan.
“Each of us has an individual responsibility to be vigilant, call out any injustice we witness and condemn intolerance, incitement, harassment based on religious belief,” he added.
Pointing out the alliance’s importance in showing that many countries share the same vision, and are ready to transform the current international system into “a better one,” Fidan said: “We can focus on the root causes of the problems by creating working groups and regional forums.”
“Let us take this forum as an opportunity to renew our call for ending the vicious cycles of misperceptions, hatred, violence and conflict,” he called, urging to stop the bloodshed.
Expressing Türkiye’s readiness, Fidan underlined that an action plan must be implemented to realize the potential of the alliance.
Fidan underlined the importance of increasing the visibility of the alliance, expressing the need to transform the alliance's “soft power tool to serve as a bridge to the networks of religious and faith-based organizations.”
He thanked the host country, Portugal, for its strong support of the alliance and paid tribute to its first high representative, former Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio.
