Foreign Minister Gul Due To Italy On Saturday

ANKARA - Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul will leave for Italy on Saturday to participate in unofficial meetings of foreign ministers of European Union (EU) member countries.
Gul will participate in a lunch that will be hosted for representatives of EU candidate countries.
Joint defense and foreign policy of EU, studies of European Convention, EU Constitution, Iraq, Iran's nuclear capacity, and Israeli-Palestinian dispute are among the agenda items of the meeting.
Gul is also expected to have bilateral meetings and learn views of other countries about Turkey's EU process and dispatch of soldiers to Iraq.
Gul will convey the point reached in Turkey's EU process prior to Progress Report expected to be announced in November. Gul will also give information about adjustment packages.
Gul will once again stress government's determination in this respect, and recall that the target was to set a date to Turkey to start full membership negotiations.
(AY) 05.09.2003