ANKARA - Turkish President Abdullah Gul left for Macedonia on Thursday to attend the 15th Summit of Presidents of Central European States.
Prior to his departure, Gul told reporters at Ankara`s Esenboga Airport that he would visit this country upon an invitation from Macedonian President.
Gul said he would attend the summit to be held in Macedonian city of Ohrid from May 1st to 3rd as the special guest of President Branko Crvenkovski of Macedonia, and he would deliver a speech.
Gul said he would also hold bilateral talks with some of participating presidents in which reciprocal relations as well as regional and international problems would be discussed.
Later, President Gul will proceed to Skopje on May 3rd.
In Skopje, President Gul will meet his Macedonian counterpart Crvenkovskito and exchange views on Turkey-Macedonia relations, regional and international developments. Gul is also scheduled to receive Macedonian parliament speaker and prime minister.
"Turkey considers Macedonia a country in the middle of the Balkans, assuming an important role to maintain peace stability and welfare," Gul added.
"Turkey has always supported endeavors of Macedonia to integrate with the European-Atlantic institutions, within the framework of NATO`s `open door` policy," Gul said.
During the visit, an agreement will be signed by the two countries to cooperate in dealing with aftermath of natural disasters. "I believe that this visit will add new momentum to co-operation and bilateral relations with Macedonia," Gul added.
President Gul is expected to return home on May 4th after visiting the Ottoman-era sites in Macedonia.
-TURKEY ATTENDS THE SUMMIT FOR THE FIRST TIME-
President Gul, along with German President Horst Kohler, was invited to the summit as special guest. It will be the first attendance of Turkey at the summit which will bring together heads of state of 18-member countries (Albania, Austria, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, Italy, Montenegro, Hungary, Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine).
Established in 1989 as an intergovernmental forum for political, economic and cultural cooperation among member countries, CEI`s main objective is to assist central and eastern European countries in their EU membership process by contributing to their democratization.
(AY-AÖ)