ANKARA - Turkish President Abdullah Gul hosted Friday a dinner in honor of his Iraqi counterpart Jalal Talabani, who is currently paying a two-day working trip in Turkish capital Ankara.
Gul expressed hope that Talabani`s visit would be "a historic turning point for the future of relations between the two countries."
"We would like to implement a comprehensive series of measures to strengthen our relations in all fields with Iraq," Gul said.
Gul also underlined that Talabani was the first elected Iraqi president to visit Turkey, adding that the visit was a symbol of the "meeting of two modern democracies."
Talabani said on his part that Iraq attached "special importance" to relations with Turkey, stressing that his country aimed at further developing the relations on the basis of strengthening the cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
"We are willing to develop our relations on the basis of mutual respect for the independence of our two countries, maintaining security and stability, and strengthening the cooperation in the fight against terrorism," Talabani said.
(YMB-BRC)