ANKARA - Deputy Speaker of the Turkish Parliament, Nevzat Pakdil, received Thursday the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO-PA) Italian Delegation in Ankara.
Chairman of the Italian Delegation, Senator Sergio de Gregorio, said that they wanted to further promote good relations between Turkey and Italy.
"I was excited and felt emotional while visiting the Mausoleum of (Turkey's founder) Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. Visiting Ataturk, who helped form the base of the Republic of Turkey, was a good beginning for us," Sergio de Gregorio said.
Touching on the negotiations taking place between Turkey and the European Union (EU), Sergio de Gregorio said that "the EU will open its arms for you soon. As Italy, we have always supported Turkey's full membership in the EU. We hold debates with our counterparts who doubt Turkey's membership in the EU. Turkey's status is very important".
"Turkey is trying to make reforms in the EU process. Turkey has an important position in the region and NATO. Turkey's stance on regional matters and global peace was right and appreciated by the global countries," Gregorio said.
Nevzat Pakdil, on his part, said that Italy had always supported Turkey on the way to EU.
"We have always received support from our Italian friends. This support is crucial in detecting what is correct and in earning the friendship of Turkey," Pakdil said.
"Turkish-Italian economic relations are important and the bilateral trade volume continues to grow. Italian entrepreneurs have serious investments in Turkey and we expect to see an increase in Italian investments in Turkey," Pakdil stressed.
"Turkey and Italy can do many things together in the region. We are together in NATO. NATO's new structure will contribute to global peace. It is pleasing to see that Turkey's far sightedness gets accepted throughout the world. It is impossible to impose certain things in the world by using force and without dialogue. Everyone must accept the existing realities. It would be sufficient for certain countries to keep their eyes open to see the realities," Pakdil said.
"Global peace could be possible by dialogue. Resorting to war should be the last option. Turkey and Italy, together, can contribute to global peace," Pakdil said.
Pakdil's meeting with the Italian delegation later continued behind closed doors. Chairman of the NATO-PA Turkish Delegation Vahit Erdem also attended Pakdil's meeting with the Italians.
The NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO-PA), formerly the North Atlantic Assembly, is an inter-parliamentary organization of legislators.
Rather than being established by the North Atlantic Treaty, NATO-PA is a separate entity from NATO, although it maintains a close working relationship with NATO. NATO-PA's Standing Committee meets annually with both the Secretary General and the Permanent Representatives to the North Atlantic Council.
NATO-PA's origins date back to 1955, when an annual conference of NATO parliamentarians was created. In November 1967, the North Atlantic Council recommended that an informal relationship be established between the two bodies.
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