Caught between two worlds

In the recent parliamentary elections in Turkey, the Islamic Justice and Development Party won a nearly two-thirds majority. Having ousted the ruling coalition parties, the party will form the first single-party government in more than a decade. The party's leader, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who described his party as centre right and not religiously oriented, promised to proceed with talks about Turkey's accession to the European Union and to maintain the country's pro-Western stance.

The election result has sparked great debate in the Arab Press. Commenting on this result in its editorial, Al-Khaleej (UAE), said that the military officials will not deal with the Justice and Development Party in the same way as they dealt with the former leader, Najmuddin Erbakan, whom they forced to resign.

This is because of Erdogan's reconciliatory announcements. In fact, through these statements, Erdogan sought to allay his opponents' domestic concerns as well as the fears of the Europeans and the International Monetary Fund. Also, with this approach, he has indirectly tried to reassure the U.S. that in spite of the party's victory, the country which is pro-Western and collaborates with Israel will remain its ally. This reassurance is to let the U.S. know that it is not going to be a party that will earn the hatred of the people. But what is the Arabs stance, asks Al-Khaleej.

Although Erdogan said that his party is conservative and not Islamic, some Arabs are happy because an Islamic party in a neighbouring country has won the elections. Yet this relationship between the two has not been a pleasant one as the Arabs have had many differences with Turkey, says Al-Khaleej.

In fact, Turkey is not the only one to blame for these differences. The Arabs are equally responsible since they lack a strategic and unified view in most of the issues. For this reason, the Arab-Turkish relations should be rectified, adds Al-Khaleej.

Moreover, no one should expect Ankara to forgo its interests with the Western countries and Israel for nothing even if an Islamic party has come to power. This is because Turkey has a strategy and a foreign policy that contradicts the Arab world's interests, says Al-Khaleej.

To change Turkey's stand, Arabs should be proactive rather than merely accusing Turkey of following the West and Israel. Arabs should work hard to prevent Turkey from becoming an enemy since this is what Washington and Israel want. Without this effort, the status quo will remain, as having an Islamic party in power will not automatically change the situation for the benefit of Arabs and Muslims, concludes Al-Khaleej.

Yet Akhbar Al-Arab (UAE) views the Justice and Development Party victory differently. In its editorial comment, it stressed that the party's success at this special time has boosted both the domestic situation inside Turkey and the regional Arab and Islamic status. In Turkey, the success of this party that adopts a moderate Islamic ideology, rejects terrorism, and calls for democracy means that most Turkish people want to return to their historical heritage and civilisation, says Akhbar Al-Arab.

The victory means that Turkey will choose a path that differs from its past stances through which it established ties with Israel. It could be inferred that it will revise its ties with Tel Aviv. Also, Erdogan had mentioned that Turkey will not participate in the intended strike against Iraq, adds Akhbar Al-Arab.

With Turkey's stance regarding the war against Iraq, the U.S. will not have any support for its intended strike, especially since the neighbouring states of Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Syria oppose this war. This raises the question of whether the U.S. will accept the new leadership which the Turkish people have chosen through democratic elections or will it pressurise Turkey to prevent the victorious party from coming to power, says Akhbar Al-Arab.

There are many lessons to be learnt from the Turkish election such as the successful participation of Islamic parties in a democratic system. In fact, democracy has transformed the natural tension between the different parties to healthy competition for the elections, which is a good example, concludes Akhbar Al-Arab.

Although the ruling generals have placed many obstacles in the path of the Islamic parties, they managed to communicate with the people successfully which ensured their victory. In spite of secularism, Islam has been growing in a more moderate and progressive form in Turkey as compared with many other countries, says Al-Riyadh (Saudi Arabia) in its editorial comment.

Turkey has historical ties with the Arab and the Islamic world that cannot be destroyed. But the fluid international political situation has continuously forced Turkey to stand against the Arabs. It is because of this misunderstanding between the Arabs and Turkey that Ankara has been seeking to join any ally that opposes the Arabs, starting with the Baghdad Pact, to form strong ties with Israel, says Al-Riyadh.

The Justice and Development Party might not make significant changes in the state's political stances, yet it is more moderate than the other parties. For this reason, Israel is worried at this victory since the new government might get closer to the Arabs, adds Al-Riyadh.

In fact, Israel remains the first beneficiary of its ties with Turkey since it has significant water and weapons deals with Ankara and because there are increasing differences between Ankara and the Arab world. However, Turkey can alter its course if it overcomes past differences and views its role in the Arab and Islamic worlds as being a viable one. Indeed, the Islamic parties are most suitable for this role, adds Al-Riyadh.

Moreover, the U.S., which has always considered Turkey of geographical importance, might change its position in the future. Also, the European Union (EU) prefers to have Turkey with its 70 million Muslims as a friend and neighbour rather than a member state, concludes Al-Riyadh.

In fact, the election results have supported the EU's stance on Turkey. Many European countries are worried about Turkey's shift from being a secular country to an Islamic one, writes Randa Taqey El Din in Al Hayat (UK-based).

The French papers consider the victory of the Islamic parties a historical occasion for reconciling Islam and democracy and an event that can help establish a bridge between two civilisations. The papers also noted that this victory is a success for Europe, adds Randa.

But this does not mean an end to European fears about Turkey joining the union, bearing in mind that those fears not only relate to Ankara having a ruling Islamic majority but also because of its poor human rights record, says Randa.

Moreover, The French president, Jacques Chirac, has notified Ankara that it is still does not meet the democratic standards required for joining the union. Also, the former French minister of foreign affairs, Huber Vedrine, said that Turkey is a large country that has a strong influence in the Middle East and Central Asia and as such it does not need to be European, adds Randa.

In spite of the limited negative reactions, Europe has dealt positively with the Islamists' victory. The U.S. has also encouraged the EU to have Turkey as a member. It is clear that the strategic allianc