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ANKARA - ''European Union (EU) Commission offered to donate 500 million Euro in 2006,'' said Turkish FM and Deputy PM Abdullah Gul today.
Answering a question motion from the Motherland Party Istanbul deputy Emin Sirin, Gul indicated that the Customs Union Agreement has positively contributed to the increase of trade volume between Turkey and the EU, and helped to boost welfare of the Turkish society.
Gul noted that, although the trade volume in the initial years of the Customs Union was to Turkey's disadvantage, this scenario changed in the following years.
Abdullah Gul also stressed that work is underway to determine the amount of aid the EU would provide to Turkey for its efforts to harmonize laws and regulations with those of the EU (between 2007-2013).