“A Just Memory For All”, Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, 4 May 2014 Article by H.E. Mr. Ahmet Davutoglu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey published in Foreign Policy magazine (USA) on 15 November 2013 Joint Article by Mr. Ahmet Davutoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey and Mr. Zlatko Lagumdzija, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina published in Washington Post on 2 August 2013 Article by H.E.Mr. Ahmet Davutoglu, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey published in Guardian, June 2013 Article by H.E. Mr. Ahmet Davutoglu, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey published in Middle East Policy Council, March 2013 Article by H.E. Mr. Ahmet Davutoglu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey published in Foreign Policy magazine (USA) on 21 March 2013 Article by H.E. Mr. Ahmet Davutoglu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey published in Politique Internationale, Autumn 2012 (French) Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey Published in Hürriyet Daily News on 1 June 2012 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey Published in TEPAV & IPLI Turkey Policy Brief Series, March 2012 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Spectrum, the Biannual Publication of the CTBTO Interview by Mr. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in AUC Cairo Review (Egypt) on 12 March 2012 Interview by Mr. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Folha de Sao Paulo (Brazil) on 28 February 2012 Article by Mr. Ahmet Davutoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey and Mr. Erkki Tuomioja, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland published in Hürriyet Daily News, 25 February 2012 Interview by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in The Australian Newspaper (Australia) on 21 January 2012 Interview by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Der Spiegel Newspaper (Germany) on 12 December 2011 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Le Matin Newspaper (Morocco) on 14 November 2011 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Estado de Sao Paulo Newspaper (Brazil) on 9 October 2011 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Kathimerini Newspaper (Greece) on 10 March 2011 Interview by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey to Kathimerini Newspaper (Greece), 6 March 2011 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Süddeutsche Zeitung Newspaper (Germany) on 4 February 2011 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in China Daily Newspaper (China) on 2 November 2010 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Foreign Policy magazine (USA) on 20 May 2010 Article by Foreign Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoğlu and Foreign Minister of Brazil Celso Amorim published in New York Times Newspaper on 26 May 2010 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Irish Times Newspaper (Ireland) on 9 March 2010 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Asharqalawsat Newspaper (Saudi Arabia) on 02.01.2010 Article by Foreign Minister of Turkey H.E. Ahmet Davutoglu and Minister Frattini published in Corriere della Sera Newspaper (Italy) on 18.11.2009 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in El Pais Newspaper (Spain) on 16.11.2009 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Nine o’Clock and Adevarul Newspapers (Romania) on 29.10.2009 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in De Volkskrant Newspaper (Netherlands) on 08.10.2009 Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu published in Daily Star Newspaper (Lebanon) on 31 July 2009
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Article by H.E. Ahmet Davutoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey Published in Hürriyet Daily News on 1 June 2012

Somalia, tradegy of our consciences, a big question ignored for many years.

AHMET DAVUTOĞLU

In the international arena, there are some problems that you can solve on your own or with a minimal number of partners. There are some others that you cannot easily find a solution for, because they have already become so stiffened by being there for a long time. More importantly they have become the problems of our consciences. The plight of Somalia, which is among the least developed countries, represents a disgrace for the international community in the 21st century.

The long-standing tragedy in Somalia is a big question the whole world has been ignoring for decades. Unfortunately as the international community we have been silently watching the people of this war-torn country suffering, being driven away from their homes and even becoming victims of terror. We should openly admit that we all have a responsibility in this. Today is the time to give back to the Somali people what has been taken from them. Today is the day international actors and friends of Somalia will come together with a unified resolve and in a determined way, with cooperation as well as coordination, to help these people.

With this aim, Turkey has taken a concrete step to help her Somali brothers and sisters get rid of the life-threatening challenges they have been facing for a long time. The visit of the Turkish prime minister together with his family and members of the Council of Ministers to Mogadishu in late August 2011 became a remarkable starting point on this path. Following this historic visit, Turkey launched a comprehensive campaign to meet the needs of the people and the government of that beautiful country. It coincided with a severe drought that hit the Horn of Africa, andour efforts also concentrated on combating this natural disaster.

Shortly after this visit, our embassy was reopened after nearly two decades, with a resident ambassador, as Turkish NGOs, representatives of different aid organizations and public departments arrived in the country to carry out their work. Our intention was also to draw the attention of world public opinion to this tragedy. Turkey took the initiative to inform her international partners in every possible forum about the needs of Somalia and the urgency of meeting them.

Today, we gladly observe that the reaction of the international arena on this issue is visible. With the UN to be the first, some international actors are now considering establishing ties with Somalia. However, these are not enough to revitalize this long-suffering country and put it on its feet again. More aid, more work, more support are needed from all of us.

The aim of the Second Istanbul Conference on Somalia, to be held in Istanbul on May 31 and June 1, 2012, is to discuss what can be done at this crucial time for Somalia. The transition period is going to end on August 20, 2012, and new administrative and security mechanisms to get the country functioning efficiently should be constructed. My country is pleased to be the venue for the very important discussions about the shaping of the post-transition period, especially in terms of state building.

There are five issues at stake when planning the future of Somalia. The first is the construction of national unity, as this is the precondition for reaching stability and state building. The second element is the establishment of a new political system wherein the new state, government and institutions should be composed of all the parties in Somalia. The third point is that a new comprehensive economic reconstruction strategy should be assembled in order to successfully plan, manage and coordinate the work and to facilitate the exploitation of the rich natural resources of the Somalis by the Somalis and for the Somalis. Another point is rebuilding the Somali national security forces, without which economic activity would not be possible. And last but not least is lifting the isolation of Somalia. Concrete steps should be taken in Istanbul to this end. Istanbul will provide a chance to further the resolutions and decisions adopted up to now, the implementation of which should not be delayed any longer.

We also organized a five-day meeting in Istanbul in advance of the Conference, bringing together about 300 representatives of Somali civil society, that will constitute a strong testimony of Somali ownership of the ongoing and future political processes. During the meeting the participants will exchange different views about the realities of their own country and a statement indicating their common views will be issued.
We sincerely hope that all these efforts will thoroughly work to help Somali people change their unfortunate destiny. We are very confident that as long as we are determined to stand by them, this will be achieved.

It is time for the international community to help Somali mothers and children, who have been suffering for so long, wipe away their tears by providing a stable and secure living environment. This will be a remarkable step towards establishing lasting peace, stability and welfare in the Horn of Africa.
The Somalia question will remain a test for the conscience of all humanity.