Turkey Connects Arabs to European Democracy

Arab newspapers have given much space to this interpretation of events. Sark’ul Avsat, one of the most popular newspapers of the Arab world, led with news of the assignment of a date to start negotiations for Turkey’s membership. Beside a photograph of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan with a Turkish flag, the paper reported the "Historic deal for accession of first Muslim state to Europe." The newspaper also published British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s words "[It] is a historic event. It shows that those who believe there is a fundamental clash in civilizations between Christian and Muslims are actually wrong, that we can work together and we can cooperate together." Al-Hayat, another Arab newspaper based in London, gave its front page to the historic event: "EU accepted Turkey’s cultural significance. It set a date to start full membership negotiations." Under photographs of the EU and Turkish flags, the news indicates that Erdogan did not have to make more sacrifices than he was ready for. The Jordanian newspaper Dustur wrote: "EU: We have made history in Brussels. Turkey agreed on the start of accession talks with the EU."