Turkey encourages UN to increase its political role

Turkey wants to see a more democratic and politically active United Nations, Foreign Minister Mevlut Çavuşoğlu said Tuesday.

Çavuşoğlu made the comments during his meetings with various UN member states to secure Turkey's candidacy of non-permanent membership in the United Nations Security Council, ahead of its 2014 elections in October 2014.

He met with the UN representatives of Economic Community of West African States, which include Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote D'Ivoire, Cabo Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinee Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.

Çavuşoğlu also highlighted the issue of the rising Ebola cases that to date has claimed more than 4,400 people in West Africa, according to the World Health Organization.

"There is a need for a global solidarity to fight against this epidemic," the minister said.

He reminded everyone that Turkey had immediately helped Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea when the virus broke out.

Çavuşoğlu also met with the Southern African Development Community representatives Tuesday.

He underscored the need for a "reform" in the United Nations in his meeting.

The member states of the community include Angola, Botswana, S. Africa, Congo Democratic Republic, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seyschelles, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

He also met with Latin American and Caribbean countries' representatives as well.

Sam Kahamba Kutesa, a Ugandan lawyer and politician who is the current president of the sixty-ninth session of the United Nations General Assembly, thanked Çavuşoğlu for Turkey's help to African nations.