BUCHAREST (AA) - Turkish Foreign Minister & Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Gul welcomed on Wednesday resumption of dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina over the issue of Kosovo.
Speaking at the summit of the Southeast European Countries Cooperation Process (SECCP) in Romanian capital Bucharest, Gul stressed that any decision about final status of Kosovo should be acceptable by all relevant parties.
''Such a decision should assure a fair representation of all ethnic groups both in central and local government units,'' he said.
Gul kept on saying, ''we welcome resumption of dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina over the issue of Kosovo. I believe that extension of dialogue will have a positive impact on efforts to find a solution.''
Emphasizing that the region should keep working till peace and stability were ensured and integration with the European-Atlantic institutions were fully completed, Gul highlighted importance of support and assistance of the international community to the region.
''Despite many positive political developments in the region, problems such as organized crime, human smuggling, unregistered economy, unemployment, deficient infrastructure and corruption have still been continuing. We believe that the sides should expend more efforts to deal with them,'' he said.
Gul indicated that integration of all countries in the region with NATO would constitute a key element in ensuring security in Southeastern Europe.
Stressing that terrorism jeopardized regional stability and peace, Gul underlined importance of a powerful and comprehensive cooperation in fight against terrorism.
''Turkey will continue supporting all efforts to secure peace, stability and prosperity in the region,'' Gul added.
2005-05-11