CAIRO, September 3, 2005 (IslamOnline.net) – United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has formed a group of world luminaries to bridge gaps between the West and the Muslim world and clear misconceptions and misperceptions.

The 18-member "Alliance of Civilizations" includes international dignitaries from Iran’s former president Mohammad Khatami to South African and Noble laureate archbishop Desmond Tutu, the UN press office reported Friday, September 2, on its Web site.

It also includes former UNESCO chief Federico Mayor Zaragoza, outing chairman of the Inter-American Development Bank Enrique Iglesias, former French foreign minister Hubert Vedrine, director of Bibliotheca Alexandria Ismali Serageldin and Karen Armstrong, British expert on the history of religions.

The star-studded alliance is chaired by Zaragoza and co-chaired by Turkey’s Minister of Religious Affairs Mehmet Aydin.

The UN said the group members were chosen after extensive consultations with experts on dialogue between civilizations and culture.

The alliance initiative was first unveiled by Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero at the UN General Assembly in New York last September.

The initiative was later co-sponsored by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a March summit between both leaders.

Erdogan appointed his chief foreign policy adviser Rafet Akgunay as Turkey's representative in the project.

Spain in return has appointed retired ambassador Maximo Cajal to the initiative.

The UN said the group was intended to "respond to the need for a committed effort by the international community – both at the institutional and civil society levels – to bridge divides and overcome prejudice, misconceptions, misperceptions and polarization, which potentially threaten world peace."

The alliance will aim to address emerging threats emanating from hostile perceptions that foment violence, and to bring about cooperation among various efforts to heal such divisions, according to a UN statement.

"Events of recent years have heightened the sense of a widening gap and lack of mutual understanding between Islamic and Western societies – an environment that has been exploited and exacerbated by extremists in all societies."

The group will hold four meetings, beginning in Spain’s Balearic Islands in November and ending in Turkey.

The two meetings in between are expected to be held in a European and an Islamic country.