Turkey wants role in exit strategy in Egypt, says President Gül

ISTANBUL

Turkish President Abdullah Gül (C) hosts a meeting with Arab representatives. DHA photo

Turkey wants to contribute to the development of an exit strategy to the Egyptian crisis in which all parties will have the ability to participate, President Abdullah Gül said yesterday amid growing tensions across the country.

Gül hosted a delegation of the Arab Council for International Relations in Istanbul and said he was pleased to welcome them at a very critical time. The group consists of former Arab League chief Amr Moussa and ex-Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora, as well as former Iraqi and Jordanian prime ministers Ayad Allawi and Tahir al-Masri.

Developments in Egypt and Syria were discussed during the meeting. President Gül underlined that all segments of the Egyptian people were embraced while adding that Turkey wanted to contribute to the development of an exit strategy for the future.

The president said it would be more difficult to control rival demonstrations and that painful incidents, such as the massacre of scores of Muslim Brotherhood supporters over the weekend, could happen again. He also emphasized that it was essential to make efforts for all sides to put the democratic process back on track and that all political actors, including the brotherhood, should not be excluded.