ANKARA, Nov 8 (AFP) - Syrian Foreign Minister Faruq al-Shara arrived here Monday for two days of talks, bearing a message from Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the Anatolia news agency reported.
Assad's message to his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Necdet Sezer deals with regional developments, Shara told reporters on his arrival, but gave no other details.
Shara is scheduled to meet Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul later Monday and Sezer on Tuesday before leaving Turkey.
The talks will focus on bilateral ties as well as regional and international issues, including Iraq and its territorial integrity and the Palestinian question, Anatolia quoted Shara as saying.
Turkey, a close ally of the United States and a NATO member, has pushed for better relations with its southern neighbor Syria since the US-led invastion of Iraq, despite warnings from Washington to limit cooperation with Damascus.
Turkey and Syria have significantly improved ties since 1998 when they nearly went to war over Ankara's accusations that Damascus was backing Kurdish rebels fighting the Turkish government.
Tensions eased in October of that year when Syria expelled Kurdish rebel leader Abdullah Ocalan from a safe haven on its territory and, under a security deal pledged with Turkey, pledged to stop supporting his separatist Kurdistan Workers' Party, better known as the PKK.
11/08/2004 15:25 GMT - AFP