Davutoglu: Erdogan's statement on Kosovo was no insult
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said that Ankara will not apologise to Serbia over a statement made by its Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan that "Turkey is Kosovo and Kosovo is Turkey", as it contained no insults, but only positive sentiments, noting that Serbian-Turkish ties have become the backbone of stability in the Balkans.
(kosovocompromisestuff) Monday, January 13, 2014
In an interview with the Serbian press, scheduled at Ankara's initiative to clarify Erdogan's controversial statement made in Prizren last year, Davutoglu said that the Turkish prime minister's reference to Kosovo was not a political one, nor a demonstration of an expansionist policy. It is a cultural definition - when you say in Turkish that Kosovo is someone's other country, it is an indication of close cultural ties, Davutoglu said. I sincerely hope that this should be enough to show our good intentions towards the Serbian government and the Serbian people, Davutoglu explained, adding that a small sentence should not be quoted out of the context of the entire speech. Erdogan's statement that Turkey is equally close to all Balkan nations is a much more important part of the speech, Davutoglu said. He said that the territories of Serbia, Kosovo or Bosnia are not part of Turkey, and that Ankara has made no such statements. What we are saying is that there are only joint emotions, and only a positive attitude towards Serbia, Davutoglu said.
