THE MESSAGE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY,
HIS EXCELLENCY ABDULLAH GÜL
Turkey has traditionally maintained good relations with the African Continent. The Ottoman Empire had contacts with the Continent over a vast geography stretching from East and Central Africa to Zanzibar of today’s Tanzania.
The current level of our political, economic and cultural interaction with Africa is far from reflecting the real potential. Therefore, we aim to first restore and then enhance these historically good relations.
In the early 1960s, Turkey recognized and established diplomatic relations with all newly independent African countries and opened resident Embassies in many of them. Today, we have 12 Embassies and over 20 Honorary Consulates all over the Continent. We have recently decided to open fifteen new Embassies in the immediate future. It is a pleasure for me to observe that now, relations between Turkey and the African countries are developing steadily in a spirit of friendship and brotherhood. Taking into account the recent revival in the African Continent, I believe that these relations will acquire new dimensions in the future. I would like to confirm my desire to promote and enrich our cooperation with Africa in every field.
Africa is changing. The new dynamism can be sensed throughout the Continent. Africans have launched their own initiatives to tackle their problems. The founding of the African Union and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) are encouraging signs of new thinking which the developed countries should recognize and respond to. If we acknowledge Africa’s true nature and rich diversity, we will be in a position to effectively support developments on the Continent in collaboration with the Africans themselves.
We observe with satisfaction the performance displayed in recent years by many African countries. We observe stronger democracies and ever increasing regional cooperation. Africa is rapidly consolidating its place in the world.
It is a distinct pleasure for me to welcome African Heads of State and Government to the 1st Turkey-Africa Cooperation Summit in Istanbul. Our common aim is to ensure that the existing partnership between Turkey and Africa will become stronger, broader and deeper for the benefit of our peoples. Through unity of purpose, there is no limit to what we can achieve.
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