US President George Bush has said that freedom is the future of the Middle East and that Islamic countries need not fear the spread of democracy.
In his comments - a day after Iraq's new interim government claimed power - Mr Bush cited Turkey as an example of an Islamic country with a secular government that has found a place in the community of democracies.
"In some parts of the world, especially in the Middle East, there is wariness toward democracy, often based on misunderstanding," the US president said in Istanbul.
"Some people in Muslim cultures identify democracy with the worst of Western popular culture and want no part of it."
The US president made his remarks before ending a five-day trip to Ireland and Turkey. He said nations attending the Nato summit had agreed to work together with nations of the broader Middle East to fight terrorism, control their borders and aid victims of disaster. But he said more action was needed.
"We must strengthen the ties of trust and goodwill between ourselves and the peoples of the Middle East," Mr Bush said.
"And trust and goodwill come more easily when men and women clear their minds and their hearts of suspicion and prejudice and unreasoned fear."
Mr Bush said Turkey, a democracy with a secular government and the only Muslim nation in Nato, was a model for the region, and he reiterated his backing of Turkey's desire to join the European Union.
PA