Page 230 - A Call for a Turkish-Islamic Union

A CALL FOR A TURKISH-ISLAMIC UNION

Creating Peace and Securit
Creating Peace and Security y
Instability does not affect a given region alone; rather, it has

a negative impact on the world as a whole. The Islamic world is
one such region. Therefore, Muslim nations should not be con-
sidered as separate and independent entities. Tensions in the

Middle East are felt in North Africa. Events in the Caspian region
affect the future of the Middle East. What happens in the Persian
Gulf has a direct bearing on Southeast Asia, which means that
such apparently regional conflicts, troubles, and tensions are felt
throughout the entire Islamic world. Naturally, the same is true

for peace. For example, solving such long-term conflicts as the
Arab-Israeli war would have a positive effect throughout the Is-
lamic world.

Throughout the twentieth century, a major part of the Is-
lamic world remained locked in continuous warfare, conflict, and
instability. The resulting waste of resources nearly brought eco-
nomic development to a stand-still, caused living standards to
drop to rock-bottom, and most importantly, cost the lives of mil-

lions of Muslims. Even now, intra-Muslim disputes and conflicts
continue and engender tensions from time to time. Wars and con-
flicts between Muslim and non-Muslim nations are a great source

of instability and discontent. One significant benefit of the Turk-
ish Islamic Union is the role that it will play in delivering peace
and security to the Islamic world. The Turkish Islamic Union
must resolve intra-Muslim disputes and conflicts, as well as over-
come the wars, conflicts, and tensions between them and non-

Muslim countries, by peaceful and reconciliatory means. For ex-
ample, an Arab-Israeli peace would have the following benefits

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