ANKARA - Ousted Kyrgyz president Askar Akayev may choose to live out his exile in Turkey, Turkish newspapers Monday quoted Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul as saying.
"Some heads of state who in the past went to bigger countries (for their exile) now wish to come to Turkey," Gul told a weekend meeting of his Justice and Development Party at a town near Ankara, according to the media.
"Mr Akayev could choose to spend the rest of his life in Turkey," Gul was quoted as saying Sunday.
Akayev, toppled last month in a popular uprising, formally resigned as head of state at his Moscow refuge on Monday.
Turkey has fairly close ties with all the Turkic republics of the ex-Soviet Union, including Kyrgyzstan, which is home to some 3,500 Turks, mostly students and expatriate staff, according to figures provided by the Turkish foreign ministry.
04/04/2005 08:41 GMT