UPDATE 2 - Turkish FM urges world to be sensitive about Rohingya

UPDATES WITH AZERBAIJAN FM’S REMARKS; EDITS THROUGHOUT

By Sibel Ugurlu

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey’s foreign minister Wednesday urged the international community to show sensitivity to the plight of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state.

“Not only the Islamic world but also the entire international community should be sensitive" to the mass killings in Rakhine, Mevlut Cavusoglu told a news conference on the sidelines of a meeting of the foreign ministers of Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia in the Azerbaijani capital Baku.

Rakhine has seen simmering tension between its Buddhist and Muslim populations since communal violence broke out in 2012.

According to the UN, 123,600 Rohingya have crossed into neighboring Bangladesh and tens of thousands more have been internally displaced by the latest violence.

“There is a human tragedy there and it is unfolding in front of the eyes of the whole world," Cavusoglu said.

After his visit to Azerbaijan, Cavusoglu said, he will visit Rakhine to oversee the distribution of humanitarian aid through the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) and the Turkish Red Crescent.

Also speaking on Wednesday was Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov who said Muslims in Rakhine state had been facing persecution for years.

“We agreed that this issue must be followed carefully and support must be given for the solution,” he added.

- Joint projects

Describing relations between Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia as “perfect,” Cavusoglu added: "This tripartite meeting and tripartite mechanism contribute a lot to the region’s stability and economic development."

Cavusoglu said joint projects being launched by the three countries would benefit the entire region.

He underlined the importance of projects such as the Southern Gas Corridor and the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP).

“I hope we will inaugurate TANAP in 2018," the Turkish minister said.

The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars Railway Project has also started test runs, Cavusoglu said, adding that its grand opening will be scheduled in line with the results of this.

On the Silk Road Project/One Belt-One Road project, set to forge new trade ties between Europe and China, Cavusoglu said that Turkey, Azerbaijan and Georgia are the three most important countries along this route.

Also speaking to reporters, Georgian Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze said that Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan had expanded cooperation in many fields.

“This is actually a unique regional mechanism for cooperation, giving us an excellent opportunity to discuss this wide agenda,” Janelidze said.

Janelidze said a 2017-2019 Tripartite Sectoral Cooperation Action Plan would constitute the framework for cooperation over the next two years.