21 May 2010 / İSTANBUL , TODAY’S ZAMAN
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is expected to visit Brazil, Argentina and Chile from May 25 until June 1, the Prime Ministry announced in a statement released on Thursday.
The visits aim to deepen Turkey’s developing opportunities for cooperation with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. Erdoğan will attend the third United Nations Alliance of Civilizations Forum in Rio de Janeiro from May 26-29. More than 2,000 political and corporate leaders, civil society activists, youth, representatives of foundations and religious leaders are expected to gather and agree on joint actions to improve relations across cultures.Erdoğan is also scheduled to meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and discuss international and regional matters. Several agreements to boost bilateral relations are also expected to be signed.
Erdoğan is in addition expected to meet Turkish citizens living in Brazil and visit Brazilian oil company Petrobras, which carried out joint oil research activities with the Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) in the Black Sea. Following his Brazil visit, the prime minister is set to travel to Argentina on May 31 to meet with Argentinean President Christina Fernandez de Kirchner and mark the 100th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Argentina in addition to signing air transportation and customs agreements. Erdoğan will then move on to Chile to have talks with Chilean President Sebastian Pinera. The two leaders are expected to discuss bilateral economic and commercial relations within the scope of the free trade agreement signed in July 2009. He is expected to return to Turkey on June 1.
