US president Barack Obama met religious leaders in Istanbul, Turkey yesterday as part of an effort to unite moderates of major faiths against extremism.
Mr Obama told the Muslim world in a speech on Monday that the United States was not at war with Islam, using his first international tour to try to repair the damaged image of the US abroad.
Pursuing his message, Mr Obama talked to Istanbul’s senior Islamic official, the city’s chief rabbi and representatives of Orthodox Christian churches.
In a further sign of engagement, Mr Obama toured Turkey’s most important mosque, the Blue Mosque, accompanied by prime minister Tayyip Erdogan and Mufti Mustafa Cagrici.
Mr Obama is on the last leg of his debut trip on the world stage as president. He is trying to rebuild ties with Muslims damaged after the invasion of Iraq and the war in Afghanistan, and made more urgent by a strengthening al-Qaeda and Taliban insurgency.
“Let me say this as clearly as I can: The United States is not, and will never be, at war with Islam,” he said in his speech to the Turkish parliament in the capital, Ankara, on Monday.
The speech was directed both to Nato ally Turkey, a secular but predominantly Muslim democracy, and to the wider region.
As part of a new drive to engage with youths around the world, the US president held a town hall meeting at a cultural centre in Istanbul, as he had done in Strasbourg.
“I came to Turkey because I am deeply committed to rebuilding a relationship between the United States and the people of the Muslim world, one that is grounded in mutual interest and mutual respect,” he said.
“I believe we can have a dialogue that is open, honest, vibrant . . . And I want you to know that I am personally committed to a new chapter of American engagement,” he told the meeting.
“Meeting with the youth symbolises the expectation of hope and change, because the previous administration had a problem with its image in the Muslim world,” said Salih Altundere (23), studying international relations at Bogazici University. “Turkey has a special position in the Muslim world. This government is religious but still democratic,” he said.
Mr Obama’s two-day visit is a nod to Turkey’s regional reach, economic power, diplomatic contacts and status as a secular democracy seeking EU membership that has accommodated political Islam.
The visit to Turkey was also driven by a recognition that Ankara could help the US work towards resolving confrontations and conflicts, such as those involving Iran and Afghanistan.
“His messages on Turkey joining the EU and on Islam were very important. We really needed to hear a new message on Islam from the US,” said Ahmed Ozun, a 23-year-old barber working in Istanbul’s historic centre.
Turkey is a key ally for the US, as it has close ties with Israel, Iran, Iraq and Syria, and acts as a transit route for US troops and equipment bound for Iraq and Afghanistan. Unlike his predecessor George W Bush, Mr Obama is seeking rapprochement with foes such as Iran and Syria.
His message in Turkey drew a mixed reaction elsewhere in the Muslim world.
“That’s a very positive statement and I want to be on record to appreciate that,” Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said at a news conference in Islamabad with the US special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrooke.
But Munawar Hassan, head of Pakistan’s Jamaat-e-Islami party, said the US was on a crusade against Islam. “They have destroyed Iraq. They have destroyed Afghanistan. Their actions are totally opposite to what they are saying. Such good statements do not make any difference,” he said.
In Istanbul, Mr Obama visited Hagia Sofia, a former basilica and now a museum that is considered the embodiment of Byzantine architecture.
He also toured the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque. “Spectacular,” was the US president’s reaction to it. – (Reuters)