Westerwelle, accompanied by senior executives of leading German companies and a number of journalists, will meet with President Abdullah Gül, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu and Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan in Ankara, according to separate statements from the Foreign Ministry and German Embassy in Ankara. He will later head to İstanbul, where he will meet with Turkey’s chief EU negotiator Egemen Bağış and attend business meetings before wrapping up his three-day visit on Friday. While in Ankara, he will also address a brainstorming meeting of Turkish diplomats which started on Monday.
Westerwelle’s visit is his first since parliamentary elections in Germany in September. The Foreign Ministry said talks with Westerwelle are aimed at finding ways to further expand cooperation with Germany. It also said the Turkish authorities will convey Ankara’s position on ongoing accession negotiations with the EU.
Notwithstanding strong bilateral cooperation, Turkish-German relations are facing difficulties in regard to Turkey’s EU membership bid. Chancellor Angela Merkel calls for a privileged partnership, opposing full membership. Westerwelle is the leader of junior coalition partner the Free Democratic Party, whose views on Turkish accession are more positive than those of Merkel.
