Turkish foreign minister meets with numerous world diplomats

ANKARA, ANTALYA

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu met with numerous top diplomats and heads of international organizations on Saturday on the occasion of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF) in southern Turkey.

Cavusoglu started the day with a trilateral meeting with the participation of foreign ministers of Malta and Libya, Evaris Bartolo and Najla Mangoush, respectively in Antalya.

He then held another trilateral meeting with Moldova’s Acting Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Aureliu Ciocoi.

Turkey is strengthening its cooperation with Moldova in every field and supporting its Gagauz kinsmen, Cavusoglu said.

Cavusoglu also held separate meetings with Afghanistan’s chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah and Foreign Minister Mohammed Haneef Atmar.

Cavusoglu’s busy day continued with the meetings, which he described as fruitful, with foreign ministers of Malaysia, Somali and Tajikistan, Hishamuddin Hussein, Mohamed Abdirizak and Sirojiddin Muhriddin, respectively.

He also held a tour of meetings with Mathias Corman, General-Secretary of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Kenyan Foreign Minister Raychelle Omamo, and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Furthermore, Cavusoglu met with Polish, Gabonese and Cameroonian foreign ministers, Zbigniew Rau, Pacôme Moubelet Boubeya, and Lejeune Mbella Mbella, respectively.

He lastly met with former foreign ministers of Germany and Austria, Sigmar Gabriel and Karin Kneissl, and the 5th president of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko.

Later, Cavusoglu met with young people as part of the ADF Youth Forum.

Commenting on Turkey’s Asia Anew initiative, he said: “Asia has once again become the center of economic power in the world. The balance of the economy is shifting rapidly towards Asia”.

Cavusoglu said Turkey could not see the solidarity it expected from NATO from time to time despite the fact that it is one of the countries that has made the most contributions to the military alliance.

He said Turkey currently has good relations with Russia. “Just as other states within NATO, we also develop diplomatic relations with other countries.”

“Countries like us, which are not only regional but also global actors, have to maintain good relations with different countries at the same time. One should not be seen as an alternative to the other. It is important to be principled and transparent,” he said

The Turkish top diplomat stressed that countries from different parts of the world want to improve economic relations with Turkey.

Countries attach great importance to the economic potential of Turkey thanks to opportunities offered by regionalization, Cavusoglu noted.

The three-day Antalya Diplomacy Forum, with Anadolu Agency as its global communication partner, is hosting ten heads of state and government, 42 foreign ministers, three former heads of state and government, and more than 50 representatives of international organizations or former government officials, according to the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

Debates of global importance were analyzed in-depth during the forum, including the Balkans, the future of Europe, trans-Atlantic relations, refugees and migrants, and the threat of terrorism.

* Zehra Nur Duz contributed to the story from Ankara.