WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Ahmet Necdet Sezer sent a congratulatory message to the American-Turkish Council (ATC) for the 22nd annual conference on U.S.-Turkish relations which will begin in Washington, D.C. on Monday.
Sezer said in his message that Turkish-American relationship, based on shared values in a deep-rooted and successful alliance and that has attained the level of strategic partnership after the Cold War, was passing through a test confirming its strength and endurance at this critical juncture.
''Turkey and the United States, once again, are closely cooperating in order to maintain peace and stability in the Middle East. We have no doubt that this cooperation built upon mutual respect, understanding, regular consultations as well as devotion to peace, freedom and democracy will continue to yield successful results,'' Sezer noted.
In his message, President Sezer stated, ''the cooperation between Turkey and the United States, that presents a valuable contribution to stability and peace in a fragile geography, is not constrained by mere government-to-government relations, but is deepening in many areas based on the strong friendship between our peoples.''
Stressing that Turkey was pursuing its economic stability program with determination and was making the political and economical strides that its EU membership orientation required, Sezer said, ''we believe that the opportunities for cooperation and the investment climate provided by Turkey that went through radical institutional changes in this regard should be better assessed. The overall Turkish-American relations will certainly be stronger through the intensification of our economic and commercial cooperation.''
''In this context, I would like to extend my sincere appreciation for the efforts of the ATC and the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK), as well as the business communities that perform under the auspices of these institutions that have made important contributions to the Turkish-American friendship for years,'' he added.
(EÖ-AÖ) 17.03.2003