SETimes.comRomania pledges 'unreserved' support for Turkey's EU bid
04/03/2008
Turkish President Abdullah Gul was in Bucharest on Monday for talks with his Romanian counterpart, Traian Basescu. Also this week: the UN's special envoy to Cyprus meets with leaders on the divided island.
Romanian President Traian Basescu expressed his country's "unreserved" support for Turkey's EU accession bid, during a joint press conference Monday (March 3rd) with his visiting Turkish counterpart, Abdullah Gul. Basescu said Bucharest would use its experience in EU matters to help Turkey. The two leaders signed a series of agreements on co-operation in energy and transport and discussed the Nabucco gas pipeline project.
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The UN's special envoy to Cyprus, Michael Moller, met with newly-elected President Dimitris Christofias on Monday (March 3rd). Earlier, Moller held talks with the leader of the Turkish community on the divided island, Mehmet Ali Talat. The envoy said talks on reuniting the island would likely resume during the second half of March.
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Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, the former EU mediator in the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s, met with Romanian counterpart, Adrian Cioroianu, on Friday (February 29th) in Bucharest. They discussed the situation in the Western Balkans, following Kosovo's declaration of independence. Bildt urged Serbia to avoid self-isolation, as it reacts to the recognition of Kosovo's independence by the big European countries.
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Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany held talks Tuesday (February 26th) in Budapest with his Macedonian counterpart, Nikola Gruevski. Gyurcsany said his country supports Macedonia's NATO bid and its aspirations to start EU membership talks.
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Albanian Foreign Minister Lulzim Basha met in Ankara with his Turkish counterpart, Ali Babacan, to discuss regional matters, including Kosovo's declaration of independence. At a joint press conference Tuesday (February 26th), Babacan pledged Turkish support for Albania, Croatia and Macedonia's NATO membership bids.
(Various sources – 26/02/08-04/03/08)