ANKARA - Foreign Ministry and Turkey's Secretariat General for the European Union (EU) will have a busy period, when little time left for the European Commission's Progress Report about Turkey which is expected to be announced on November 5.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul will start to their visits to the EU countries next week and convey Turkey's progresses on the EU process to their interlocutors.
Erdogan and Gul will first visit Austria, Germany and Italy and emphasize the government's determination on the issue. They will also give message that Ankara aims to start membership negotiations as soon as possible.
Erdogan is expected to come together with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, Germany Foreign Minister Joschka Fisher and Christian Democrat Union Party (CDU) leader Angela Merkel during his visit to Germany. Prime Minister Erdogan will also meet with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and prime ministers of other EU countries during a forum which will be held by ''Ambrosetti'', a think-tank organization in Italy.
Gul who will leave for Vienna to meet with Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel, Parliament Speaker Andreas Khol and Foreign Minister Benita-Maria Ferrero-Waldner will attend an unofficial meetings of EU foreign ministers in Italy.
Gul is also expected to visit France after Austria and Italy.
Meanwhile Turkey's Secretariat General for the EU will convey the European Commission the steps taken in Turkey about the process.
Turkey's Secretariat General for the EU will prepare an additional document, including information about the 6th and 7th adjustment packages, and convey it to the European Commission in September. The 6th and 7th adjustment packages could not be included in the ''Turkey's Contribution to Progress Report''.
Turkey's Secretariat General for the EU gave time to the related institutions and organizations to complete their studies pertaining to their contribution to the document, till September. The report will be given to EU after being completed and translated into English.
Many EU delegations are expected to visit Ankara before the Progress Report.
Diplomatic sources said the Progress Report is expected to be announced in November, and that they were hopeful that the report would be positive in line with their expectations.
(EÖ-AY) 30.08.2003