CAIRO
Turkish President Abdullah Gul said on Thursday that the "Syria issue could be solved by the region and not those far away."
Speaking to Turkish reporters in Cairo where he attended the 12th Summit meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), President Gul stressed that "many individuals talk a lot and there is rhetoric on Syria. The Syria issue seems easy since the homes of many outside Syria are not burning. The region is our home and Syria is a matter of concern to regional countries."
Touching on the difficulties of the Arab Spring, President Gul emphasized that the problems of the Arab Spring were normal.
"We have to give the Arab Spring time. Democracy is not an easy thing. Democracy requires patience," Gul stressed.
On Egypt and its democratization process, President Gul underlined that Egypt's transition to democracy after a long period of an authoritarian regime, the following parliamentary and presidential elections and a referendum on a constitution were all great successes.
Turkey will host the next OIC Summit.
