Divisions weaken Islamic world, says Turkey's president

ISTANBUL

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that sectarianism, racism and terror seriously had weakened the Islamic world.

“What are the main problems that [the Islamic world suffers from]? There are three main subjects here: sectarianism, racism and terror. These seriously weaken [us],” Erdogan told a news conference in Istanbul held after the end of the 13th Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) summit.

Erdogan said: “On the point of sectarianism, I belong neither to Shia religion, nor Sunni. We have only one religion: Islam. I am a Muslim.”

Erdogan reiterated that Daesh or Boko Haram did not represent Islam.

During the two-day summit, Erdogan said leaders of OIC member states discussed mainly terror and sectarianism. Erdogan stressed that the member states had agreed to combat all kinds of terror organizations.

Once again, Erdogan thanked OIC member countries for their support to establish a police cooperation and coordination center in Istanbul and voiced his support for a Saudi-backed initiative to fight against terror groups.

Erdogan said the OIC should deal with problems faced by Muslims: “Honestly, [the OIC] would become meaningless if it is not going to deal with Muslims’ problems. Why do we turn to non-Muslims regarding Muslims’ problems? Muslims should solve Muslims’ problems. The OIC should solve these.”

The Turkish leader called the summit “historic,” adding that Islamic countries would continue to work together.

Erdogan stressed Turkey’s contribution to the OIC since its foundation: “In the coming two years, we will strive to increase our works,” he said.

This is the first time Turkey hosted the two-day summit since the body’s inception.

Turkey took over the organization’s chairmanship from Egypt for the next two years.

The summit hoped to increase unity and solidarity between Muslim countries in the fight against terrorism. During the high-level meeting, Muslim leaders discussed the situation in Syria, Yemen, Palestine, Iraq, and Azerbaijan.

Founded in 1969, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation consists of 57 member states and represents the collective voice of the Islamic world.