President Sampaio, Minister Moratinos, Ministers, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am privileged to address the growing ranks of the Group of Friends, which, I believe, now includes 67 countries and 13 international organizations. Allow me to begin my words by expressing my deep appreciation to our Spanish hosts for organizing this significant Forum and for their warm hospitality. The high level of attendance at the First Alliance of Civilizations Forum gives me every confidence that our deliberations will provide a major impetus for further progress in the work of the Alliance. I have listened carefully to the intervention of our High Representative, President Sampaio, on the expected outcomes of the Forum and the impressive number of concrete projects that he has been developing. Turkey is committed to this process and to the smooth transition to the implementation stage, so that words can swiftly be translated into action.

We have prepared a detailed and ambitious “National Strategy for cross-cultural dialogue” today, which will help to focus our national efforts at implementing the objectives of the Alliance. Pluralism and diversity; cooperation and networking; dialogue and understanding; and respect for human dignity, fundamental fredoms and gender equality will guide our strategy and motivate our actions. A high-level coordinating committee will provide political oversight with respect to implementation. The religious dimension of inter-cultural dialogue will have a prominent place in our strategy, while specific projects in the fields of education, youth and media will be pursued.

We support the appointment of prominent personalities as Alliance Ambassadors and welcome President Sampaio’s paper to this effect. They will help to increase the public profile of the initiative and the broad spectrum of its aims and principles. We are also pleased that the Alliance’s Secretariat and institutional structure is taking shape under the able guidance of President Sampaio.

As for some of the specific projects and ideas put forward by President Sampaio; we are ready to share experiences on best practices in the implementation of National Strategies for cross-cultural dialogue. As set forth in our National Strategy, we shall put particular emphasis on regional meetings.

We welcome the initiation of several mechanisms and projects including, inter alia, the Media Fund, the Rapid Response Media Mechanism, the Online Clearinghouse beginning with a theme of Media Literacy Education, the Youth Solidarity Fund and the conclusion of partnerships with internatioal organizations.

As this is a new UN instrument for consolidating peace throughout the world, I am confident that the High Representative and the UN Secretary General would establish lines of communication with all members of the UN, in addition to the Group of Friends, so that the international community could adequately follow all the developments relating to the initiative.

The strong interest in our Alliance and the broad participation in the Madrid Forum from all corners of the world prove that the international community is determined to join hands to defeat this ideology collectively. Judging by the preliminary deliberations today, I am convinced that the Alliance’s future is assured.

President Sampaio, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Second Forum which is scheduled to be held in Turkey in 2009 will provide an opportunity to take stock of the Alliance’s evolution and to issue additional political guidance as necessary. I look forward to welcoming you all in Turkey next year. I am confident that the Alliance will have made solid progress by that time towards becoming a well-established international process.

Thank you for your kind attention.