ANKARA - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who left for Bulgaria for a two-day official visit, denied news that Turkey would withdraw 5,000 troops from Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC).
Erdogan, who will be the guest of his Bulgarian counterpart Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, told reporters before his departure that Bulgaria was a friend of Turkey, and that economic and trade relations between two countries had developed in recent years.
Turkey was the fifth trade partner of Bulgaria, Erdogan stressed. He said bilateral trade volume which was around 1.3 billion U.S. dollars by the end of 2003 would increase soon.
Investments of Turkish companies in Bulgaria amounted to 300 million U.S. dollars, he also noted.
Erdogan recalled that Turkish Sise Cam, a Turkish glassware company, would lay the foundation of its 160 million-dollar factory in Bulgaria during his visit.
PM Erdogan would also meet Bulgarian Parliament Speaker and representatives of Turkish kinsmen, it was learned.
Erdogan stated that he would find the opportunity to confirm common will to further improve bilateral relations, and expressed belief that his visit would contribute to friendship between the two countries.
-RELATIONS WITH TRNC-
On the other hand PM Erdogan denied news of a Greek Cypriot newspaper that Turkey would withdraw 5,000 troops actually deployed in TRNC, and said that Turkey and TRNC were not planning such a withdrawal.
-HIS VISIT TO JORDAN-
Asked what he discussed with King Abdallah of Jordan in his yesterday's meeting, Erdogan said that he and King Abdallah discussed the Middle East, and economic and trade relations between Jordan and Turkey.
(BRC-ULG) 06.07.2004