SOUTH AFRICA: Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan set to unveil his country's plans for sanctions against Syria

Record ID: 217542

  • Title: SOUTH AFRICA: Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan set to unveil his country's plans for sanctions against Syria
  • Date: 5th October 2011
  • Summary: PRETORIA, SOUTH AFRICA (OCTOBER 4, 2011) (REUTERS) ( ** BEWARE FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY **) VARIOUS OF EXTERIORS OF UNION BUILDINGS TURKISH PRIME MINISTER, TAYYIP ERDOGAN, AND SOUTH AFRICA DEPUTY PRESIDENT, KGALEMA MOTLANTHE, WALKING INTO NEWS CONFERENCE VARIOUS OF SOUTH AFRICAN DELEGATION ERDOGAN AND MOTLANTHE SIGNING TRADE AGREEMENTS CLOSE OF ERDOGAN SIGNING TRADE AGREEMEN
  • Embargoed: 20th October 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: South Africa, South Africa
  • Country: South Africa
  • Topics: International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVA1LUYCOHIJX4I6J237GJQDROA5
  • Story Text: Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday (October 4) he would set out his country's plans for sanctions against Syria, stepping up pressure on President Bashar al-Assad.
    Erdogan spoke during his visit to South Africa, the latest stop in a diplomatic drive into the resource-rich continent whose attention is increasingly fixed on emerging market relationships rather than old commercial ties to Europe.
    After a landmark August visit to Somalia and a tour of North Africa a month later, Erdogan brought a large business delegation to Africa's biggest economy, a clear sign of his desire to boost trade from its current humble levels.
    Having declared 2005 the "Year of Africa", Turkey has imitated Brazil in expanding its diplomatic footprint on the continent as a precursor to opening up new supply routes for its fast-growing, resource-hungry economy.
    It now has 23 African embassies, equal to Spain and only just behind former colonial power Britain, with plans to open another half dozen in the near future.
    "Our discussions covered important economic matters including the issues of international importance, with multilateral institutions such as the United Nations Security Council. We've also shared perspectives with regards to development in north of Africa as well as the Middle East, parts of that world such as Syria and so on," said South African deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe during a joint news conference with visiting Erdogan.
    Erdogan's visit also coincided with South Africa's decision not to grant a visa to the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader -- a reminder of the diplomatic clout of China, South Africa's biggest trading partner.
    China emerged as Africa's largest trading partner in 2009, outpacing the European Union and the United States, Chinese state media said.
    In the same news conference, Erdogan said his country is ready to set out plans for sanctions against Syria, after he visits a Syrian refugee camp near the border in the coming days, stepping up pressure on President Bashar al-Assad.
    The move heralds a further deterioration in previously friendly relations between Ankara and Damascus since the start of Assad's crackdown on protesters.
    "Because we cannot remain indifferent for any longer to the developments that are taking place in Syria. There are these deaths as a result of attacks on innocent defenceless people. We cannot say that this situation should continue the way it does at the moment. We must act as humans with our conscience against these situations," Erdogan told reporters, adding he expected to visit the region at the weekend or the start of next week.
    Some 7,000 Syrians have taken refuge in camps established in Hatay, Turkey, having fled the violence at home.
    Erdogan said last month that Assad would be ousted by his people "sooner or later" and warned that Syria could slide into a sectarian civil war between Alawites and Sunnis.
    At least 2,700 have been killed in the crackdown in Syria, according to a U.N. count. Demonstrators have begun to demand some form of international protection that stops short of Libya-style Western military intervention.
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