ISTANBUL - Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul flew to Britain Saturday for talks expected to focus on his country's bid to join the European Union.
The minister was scheduled to meet with British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw Monday.
"Britain will take over the EU presidency in the coming months, so we will review the work to be done during their presidency," Gul told reporters before flying to London.
"This visit is important because the start of accession talks (between Turkey and the EU) will happen during their presidency," he added.
Britain will take over the rotating presidency of the EU from Luxembourg in July for a period of six months, during which Turkey is set to start membership negotiations, on October 3.
The EU has conditioned the talks on the signing of a protocol by Ankara that would extend an already-existing Turkey-EU association agreement to cover 10 new members, including Cyprus, which joined the bloc last May.
Ankara, which refuses to endorse the internationally-recognized Greek Cypriot government of Cyprus, says it will sign the accord, but maintains that such a move will not signify recognition.
The two sides are also expected to discuss developments in Iraq, Turkey's southern neighbor, and bilateral cooperation.
Gul, who was originally scheduled to travel to Britain on Sunday, rescheduled his departure but without changing his program in London on Monday and Tuesday, a diplomat said.
On Monday, Gul is also scheduled to meet with international investors and speak at the London School of Economics.
He will visit the Oxford Center for Islamic Studies on Tuesday before heading back home.
03/12/2005 13:59 GMT