‘Achieve peace by diplomacy’
‘Wars destructive for warring parties’
“THE Turkish official News Agency ‘Anatolia’, last Monday refuted some media reports that the decision issued by the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to withdraw the Turkish research ship from the Mediterranean was pre-planned and was taken from the beginning of the ship’s mission,” columnist Dr Humoud Al-Hattab wrote for Al-Seyassah daily.
“It also said our monitor has followed some steps which fall within the activities of the ship since the very beginning of its mission, given the fact, the ship was pulled back because it has achieved its purpose within the time frame that was predetermined and this means all of the anti-Turkish policy fabricated and opportunistic allegations are refuted.
“The news agency, ‘we would like here to cite in a historical context, documenting the most important stations of the ship’s mission’, the relevant data was released by sources. On August 10, 2020, some news websites carried some statements issued by officials from the Turkish Navy in which they talked about the outset of the work of ‘Oruc Reis’ survey vessel and its mission in the Mediterranean that would last up to August 23, 2020, on the same day the mission ended, but Turkey had decided to extend this mission from August 23, 2020 up to August 27, 2020’.
“However, the agency, went on to say but the survey ship had not ended its mission, rather it had returned to Turkey to declare the extension of this mission for four days from August 28 up to Sept 1, 2020, given the fact that the Turkish official TV had declared that the ship, shall go ahead in its work in the area that had declared in advance up to Sept 12, 2020, where it will be joined by ‘Ataman’ and Genghis Khan ships.
“Given the above, pulling out of the ship on Sept 13, 2020 and berthing at the Turkish ports, was decided two weeks prior to this date, but not due to some threats and pressures.
“Anyway, irrespective of anything about the existence of the Turkish survey vessel in the Mediterranean waters or its return to the Turkish ports, it is needless to say that the free player in the international playground and based on such a scene, shall remain the Turkish policy, because it is Turkey who is the owner of its political initiatives which are taken in the framework of this chapter as well as in the framework of the other chapters through which Turkey has passed.
“However, even if we presume that the Turkish attitude in question, was a withdrawal, it is needless to say that this is a victory for the Turkish free will that is never controlled by deception or by the insanity (paranoia) or arrogance of the leaders of some states.
“In other words, the current attitude of the Turks is not based on despotism, let alone that neither the mentality of Saddam Hussein nor that of Jamal Abdul Nasser.
“On the other hand, we say even the decision to bring back the Turkish vessel to Turkey’s territorial waters to avoid any prospective embarrassment during which Turkey may not achieve victory against Greece and its allies, it is needless to say that the step taken for withdrawal, reflects political rationality, wisdom and tactic.
“In other words, the thing which the hands can’t have access to through the fierce wars, bloodshed and sabotage, can be obtainable by mutual understanding, rationality, the diplomacy and wisdom, given the fact the foes of Turkey are unsatisfied at the moment, because Ankara is not involved in war with Greece during which the military weapons dealers only will be the sole winners, while the warring parties will harvest nothing except the defeat.”
Also:
“It was a painful scene of disappointment and subservience, and despair, a shameful Arab scene, for every person with a conscience, and a cry that is not only Lebanese but spread of the Arab world – the scene of seeking the help of the French President Emanuel Macron to rescue us and this should not pass unnoticed as if nothing has happened,” columnist Asrar Jawhar Hayat wrote for Al-Qabas daily.
“It is not a joke nor a story from those who used to take about through our gatherings as well as through the social media, it is rather a fact referring that many of the Lebanese citizens were involved in seeking for the help of the French president and this means that the despair, had walked on all of the Arab revolutions and struggles against the imperialism.
“In other words, the Arab youth had spent years in their struggle against imperialism to expel the latter, but recently we found how some Arabs were striving to destroy the hopes of these youth who were looking forward to a stable homeland and good standard of living and this was represented by these Arabs seeking the help of the imperialist as if they want to tell the latter ‘come and colonize us’. Such being the case, we wonder the bitter reality that has seeped into us.
“I am not here to talk about the explosion that happened recently in Beirut which sent shockwaves to the spine, or about the scene of the silos that destroyed the hope inside us, because every Arab capital nowadays looks like Beirut in terms of its content.
“But we should not ignore this fact that the imperialist which was forced to leave along with his armies and actual existence as a result of the Arab revolutions, the hands of some others are still active to toy with the fate of Arabs.
“In other words, there were always foreign secret parties that move one stone here and throw a dice there as if our capitals are entertainment playgrounds for the future Arabs are no longer important.
“The explosion of Beirut should be a cry in the face of colonialism that changed its skin, its existence, and its methods of intervention, it must be a rejection of every form of power that does not put the Arab citizen, his concerns, hopes, and dreams into practice, and for him not against him.
“Why did the Lebanese, who were let down by their leaders, have to seek help from Emmanuel, and why was Macron moving among the Lebanese with so much confidence?
“Why did the people of the homeland have such a weak role, to force the people to resort to the old colonialist?
“In a scene that was more like a mother being molested by her children, so she had to resort to a stranger who had destroyed her.
“In conclusion, we say preserve your peoples, for the homeland is not replaceable. Likewise, faith in the homeland among peoples must not be broken.”
“I fell in love with Lebanon at first sight. During my first visit in the nineties, its beauty caught me even if it was suffering from the wounds of war as evident on its streets and buildings. This view reminded me of the scene of our return to Kuwait after liberation - the effects of the invasion and smoke from the burned wells enveloping the sky of Kuwait,” columnist Iman Haidar Dashti wrote for Al-Qabas daily.
“Although the time difference between independence, sovereignty and the signing of the constitution for the Lebanese Republic and the State of Kuwait is nearly twenty years, they have a lot in common.
“If we consider the period before the civil war in Lebanon and the seventies in Kuwait, both of them possessed economic and political independence then. The State was managed by elite, educated and patriotic people who fulfilled the requirements and foundations of the modern State in terms of lifestyle and culture. Beirut was the Paris of the East, and Kuwait was the Pearl of the Gulf.
“In the recent past, two groups set off from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The National Document for the Lebanese was in Taif and the Popular Congress of Kuwaitis was in Jeddah. Decades have passed since the end of the war and liberation, but the devastating effects remained on all levels. This necessitated the implementation of reconstruction and construction plans.
“With the availability of resources at the time - grants, loans, foreign investments, cash reserves, sovereign funds, people’s enthusiasm and individual initiatives - to compensate for what the homeland lost because of war and mistakes of the past, you could see the mistakes that overwhelmed us and even made us forget the gains of the reconstruction period. Did they improve or these resources were mismanaged?
“The residency of expatriates occupied a large space recently and left many unexplained question marks! It saddens me that the concept of loyalty is mixed with benefit or exploitation! Residency is a matter of sharing good things, having broken bread together and a homeland for those who do not understand the meanings of blood and belongingness,” columnist Tahani Al-Refaei wrote for Al-Jarida daily.
“It is a purely humanitarian issue that has nothing to do with the State, its budget or its demographic composition!
“It is an honor that increases my pride for my country to be the home of those who have no homeland. I prefer to host on my land those who know nothing but Kuwait as a home, a place or a residence! We do not have the right to demand for kindness and gratitude in this matter. It is neither logical nor prudent for a segment of those who has no known affiliation and love for anyone other than Kuwait.
“My passion does not come out of thin air. I know people who were born, raised and grew up on this good land. They know their countries only in pictures, and perhaps, in the form of stories that their grandfathers told them before death. Their feet stepped on this spot for the first time. They know no other national anthem except that of Kuwait. They sang it with their loudest voices as love and loyalty reflect on their young faces.
“They grew up with wishes and dreams that they built on the land of Kuwait. Their homes and stairs are not devoid of Kuwaiti flags and slogans. They support Kuwait in matches, even if the opposing team is that of their country, because they do not know any air or home other than Kuwait.”