State Minister & chief negotiator for European Union talks Egemen Bagis paid several visits to Brussels and other European capitals to hold talks about Turkey’s EU membership process.
Turkey’s EU membership process, efforts to overcome the nuclear crisis between Iran and the Western countries, killing of nine Turkish people in the Israeli raid on a six-ship flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza and Turkey’s undertaking presidency of the UN Security Council in September were the issues which topped Turkey’s foreign policy in 2010.
A chronological list of developments in Turkish foreign policy:
JANUARY
January 1: Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid a three-day visit to Saudi Arabia. After meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faysal, Davutoglu was received by King Abdallah.
January 4: Foreign Minister Davutoglu and Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada signed a joint statement for the "Japanese Year in Turkey" events. In the statement, the two ministers said that Turkey-Japan cooperation was powerful enough to have a positive impact on the future of the world.
January 5: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with his Brazilian counterpart Celso Amorim in Ankara.
January 7: German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle paid a visit to Turkey. Davutoglu and his German counterpart agreed that the Cyprus issue should not obstruct Turkey-EU relations and a strategic dialogue mechanism should be established between Turkish and German foreign ministries as soon as possible.
January 8: A conference was held in Ankara under the leadership of Foreign Minister Davutoglu with the participation of Turkey’s all ambassadors in foreign countries. In the statement released following the meeting, it was underlined that Turkey’s accession to the EU was essential.
January 11: Foreign Minister Davutoglu and Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs & Emigrants Ali al-Shami signed an agreement to remove visa proceedings between the two countries.
- Turkey has so far signed similar agreements to remove visa proceedings with 57 countries including Syria, Pakistan, Albania, Jordan and Libya.
- Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid a working visit to London.
January 12: Tension escalated between Turkey and Israel as a result of Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon’s attitude at a meeting with Turkish Ambassador in Tel Aviv Oguz Celikkol. Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Turkey expected an explanation and apology from Israel. Israeli Ambassador in Ankara Gaby Levy was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
- Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with British Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs David Miliband in London.
- Davutoglu said about Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Ayalon’s attitude, "no one can dare to disrespect the ambassador of Turkey."
January 13: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that they received Israel’s apology through a letter from Ayalon to Turkish Ambassador Celikkol.
January 14: Foreign Minister Davutoglu attended Turkey-Bosnia & Herzegovina-Croatia tripartite meeting in Zagreb.
January 15: Foreign Minister Davutoglu attended Turkey-Serbia-Bosnia & Herzegovina tripartite meeting in Belgrade. He said that Turkey aimed at developing utmost cooperation and integration in its region.
- State Minister & chief negotiator Bagis met with Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos and Spanish Secretary of State for European Affairs Diego Lopez Garrido during his visit to Spain.
January 16: Turkish Ambassador to Israel Oguz Celikkol came to Ankara. He said about the attitude of Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Ayalon, "it was an incident which will be included in books of history and diplomacy." Celikkol added that the diplomatic crisis ended after Israel apologized.
January 17: Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak paid a visit to Turkey and met with Foreign Minister Davutoglu. Besides the bilateral relations, recent crisis between the two countries were high on agenda of the meeting.
January 19: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that some pre-conditions and restricting rules were included in the reasoned verdict of the Armenian Constitutional Court about Turkey-Armenia protocols signed on October 10, 2009.
January 20: Foreign Minister Davutoglu held a telephone conversation with Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian and expressed his uneasiness over the Armenian Constitution Court’s decision on Turkey-Armenia protocols.
January 22: State Minister & chief negotiator for EU talks Egemen Bagis visited Austria to attend the traditional ball of the Economic Chamber of Vienna under "Istanbul, 2010 European Capital of Culture, in Vienna".
January 25: Mevlut Cavusoglu, head of the Turkish delegation at the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe, was elected the new president of the assembly with votes of 150 parliamentarians.
- Turkey-Afghanistan-Pakistan Tripartite Summit was held in Istanbul with the participation of President Abdullah Gul, President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan and President Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan.
January 26: President Abdullah Gul, together with President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan and President Asif Ali Zardari of Pakistan, opened the "Istanbul Summit for Friendship and Cooperation in the Heart of Asia". High-level officials from Afghanistan’s neighboring countries and international organizations attended the summit.
January 27: Foreign Minister Davutoglu left for London to attend an international conference on Afghanistan. During his two-day stay in the British capital, Davutoglu held a series of talks including Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian, Greek Foreign Minister Dimitrios Droutsas, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon.
FEBRUARY
February 2: Iranian Foreign Minister Manuchehr Motaki arrived in Ankara.
February 3: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with Iranian Foreign Minister Manuchehr Motaki in Ankara. Motaki said that any threat against Turkey would be considered a threat against Iran.
February 4: NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates arrived in Istanbul to attend the informal meeting of NATO defense ministers.
February 5: The informal meeting of NATO defense ministers was held in Istanbul. Defense ministers from 28 allied countries including U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates gathered in Istanbul.
February 6: U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates met with General Staff Chief Gen. Ilker Basbug in Ankara. The meeting focused on Afghanistan and the fight against the PKK terrorist organization.
- Foreign Minister Davutoglu attended the 46th Munich Security Conference in Germany.
February 7: State Minister & chief negotiator for EU talks Bagis attended a seminar on Turkey’s role in network world in London.
February 9: The fifth tripartite meeting among Turkey, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia was held in Ankara with the participation of Foreign Minister Davutoglu, Foreign Minister Sven Alkalaj of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic of Serbia.
February 10: Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid a visit to Kazakhstan and held talks with President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Prime Minister Karim Masimov.
- Turkey welcomed New Zealand’s decision to include PKK in its list of terrorist organizations.
February 11: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the report prepared by the EU rapporteur Ria Oomen-Ruijten included some unilateral, unrealistic and unacceptable elements. The Ministry also added that Turkish Cypriot party’s constructive efforts were ignored in the report.
February 16: Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid a one-day visit to Iran to assess recent developments about Iran’s nuclear program. He held talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Manuchehr Motaki and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
February 18: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns and said that the problem about Iran’s nuclear program should be resolved through diplomacy.
- An agreement was signed to remove visa proceedings between Turkey and Tanzania during the visit of Tanzanian President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete.
- Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with Minister of Foreign Affairs & Regional Cooperation Bedouma Alain Yoda of Burkina Faso in Ankara. He said that Turkey would soon open an embassy in Burkina Faso.
February 20: Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic paid a visit to Turkey and met with Foreign Minister Davutoglu.
February 21: Foreign Minister Davutoglu attended the Second Turkey-Spain Inter-governmental Summit and met with Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos in Madrid.
February 24: The agreement removing visa proceedings between Turkey and Libya came into force.
- State Minister & chief negotiator for EU talks Bagis attended a conference on Turkey-EU relations in Lithuania, the first leg of his tour of the Baltic countries.
February 25: Foreign Minister Davutoglu represented Turkey at a ceremony in Kiev in which Viktor Yanukovych was sworn in as the new president of Ukraine. He also met with President Serzh Sargsian of Armenia in Kiev.
- State Minister & chief negotiator for EU talks Bagis held a series of talks in Estonia, the second leg of his tour of Baltic countries.
February 26: State Minister & chief negotiator for EU talks Bagis met with Latvian Foreign Minister Maris Riekstins in Latvia.
MARCH
March 2: Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid a formal visit to Egypt. Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit and Davutoglu attended the second meeting of Turkey-Egypt Strategic Dialogue Mechanism.
March 3: Foreign Minister Davutoglu was received by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of in Cairo. He said that the Arab League should display a joint stance for a solution to the Palestinian issue.
- Davutoglu also attended the 133rd meeting of foreign ministers of the Arab League.
March 4: The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Relations approved a bill about the 1915 events. President Abdullah Gul expressed his regret, adding, "Turkey will not be responsible for any result that could stem from the voting." The government also condemned the bill accusing the Turkish nation of a crime which Turkish people had never committed. Turkish Ambassador in Washington D.C. Namik Tan was recalled to Ankara.
March 5: Foreign Minister Davutoglu attended the informal meeting of foreign ministers of the European Union in Spanish city of Cordoba.
March 7: Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid a visit to Syria and held talks with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Foreign Minister Walid Mualem on Turkey-Syria relations and the recent developments in the region.
March 8: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Adviser for Cyprus Alexander Downer in Ankara.
- Davutoglu also met with Foreign Minister Naha Mint Mouknass of Mauritania in Ankara and said that Turkey and Mauritania would open embassies mutually.
March 9: Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid an official visit to Ireland.
March 11: The Swedish parliament approved a resolution on Armenian allegations about the 1915 events.
March 12: Foreign Minister Davutoglu criticized the Swedish parliament’s decision during his visit to Finland and said, "it is evident that there are circles trying to take revenge from Turkey." He met with Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt.
- Following the voting at the Swedish parliament, Turkish Ambassador in Stockholm Zergun Koruturk was recalled to Ankara.
- Swedish Ambassador in Ankara Christer Asp was also summoned to the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
March 15: EU Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Fuele met with Foreign Minister Davutoglu and State Minister & Chief negotiator for EU talks Bagis.
March 18: Foreign Minister Davutoglu visited Bulgaria as the official guest of Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov. He was received by President Georgi Parvanov and Prime Minister Boyko Borissov.
March 21: Foreign Minister Davutoglu attended the International Donors Conference for Darfur organized in Cairo by the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) and co-chaired by Turkey and Egypt.
March 22: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with Lebanese National Assembly Speaker Nabih Berri in Ankara. Besides Turkey-Lebanon relations, Turkey’s regional role and the Middle East peace process were high on agenda of the meeting.
- State Minister & chief negotiator for the EU talks Bagis left for Luxembourg to hold talks about Turkey’s EU membership process.
March 24: State Minister & chief negotiator for the EU talks Bagis left for Belgium to hold talks about Turkey’s EU membership process.
March 25: Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid a formal visit to Macedonia. He held talks with Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov and Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski. He attended a conference on "Turkey’s Foreign Policy and Balkans" and inaugurated the Yunus Emre Culture Center in Skopje.
March 26: The Africa Strategy Document came into force under Turkey’s policy about African nations.
- State Minister & chief negotiator for the EU talks Bagis met with Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Steven Vanackere in Brussels.
March 30: Turkish Ambassador to Sweden Zergun Koruturk returned to Stockholm.
APRIL
April 1: State Minister and chief negotiator for EU talks Bagis met with former President of Poland Lech Valesa as part of his formal visit to Warsaw.
April 7: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioglu held a series of talks in Armenia as the special envoy of Prime Minister Erdogan. He met with Armenian President Serzh Sargsian and Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian.
April 12: U.S. President Barack Obama hosted the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C.. Leaders of 47 countries attended the summit and discussed issues of nuclear security and threat of nuclear terror. Prime Minister Erdogan, Foreign Minister Davutoglu and Energy & Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz represented Turkey at the summit.
April 16: Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu paid an official visit to Brazil. He held talks with Brazilian President Luiz da Silva and Foreign Minister Celso Amorim. He said that Turkey and Brazil would continue working together about Iran’s nuclear program.
April 19: Foreign Minister Davutoglu said following his meeting with Iraqi Vice-President Tariq al-Hashimi in Ankara that Turkey would continue extending support to Iraq.
- Later, Davutoglu left or Azerbaijan on an official visit. He was received by President Ilham Aliyev and met with Elmar Mammadyarov.
April 20: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with Iranian Foreign Minister Manuchehr Motaki, Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on the issue of nuclear security during his visit to Tehran.
April 21: Foreign Minister Davutoglu paid an official visit to Serbia and met with President Boris Tadic. He also held a tripartite meeting with his Serbian counterpart Vuk Yeremic and Spanish counterpart Miguel Angel Moratinos on the recent developments in the Balkans and in the European Union.
April 22: Foreign Minister Davutoglu attended the informal meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Estonia.
April 23: Foreign Minister Davutoglu said after Armenia suspended approval of its protocols with Turkey, "this is the unilateral decision of Armenia about their own process."
April 24: President Abdullah Gul hosted the "Tripartite Balkan Summit" in Istanbul with the participation of Presidency Chairman Haris Sladzic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, President Boris Tadic of Serbia and foreign ministers of the three countries.
April 28: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met with Foreign Minister Sven Alkalaj of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Foreign Minister Gordan Jandrokovic of Croatia at the Turkey-Bosnia&Herzegovina-Croatia Tripartite Meeting in Ankara.
MAY
May 5-6: Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu paid a two-day visit to Ukraine and Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych received Davutoglu in Kiev, Ukraine.
May 7: Davutoglu had a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Motaki in Istanbul.
May 10: Davutoglu and State Minister for European Union (EU) and chief negotiator Egemen Bagis paid a visit to Brussels, Belgium to participate in the 48th meeting of Turkey-EU Association Council.
- Davutoglu and Bagis met European Commissioner for enlargement Stefan Fule; Catherine Ashton, high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy; and European Parliament’s President Jerzy Buzek.
May 11: Speaking in a session on Europe’s enlargement in Brussels meeting of the World Economic Forum, Egemen Bagis said Turkey should become an EU member to prevent new polarization in the world.
May 16: Davutoglu travelled to Iran to debate Iran’s nuclear file with his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Motaki. Davutoglu, Motaki and Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim came together in Tehran. Davutoglu said Turkey would undertake its responsibilities to fulfil its liabilities regarding uranium swap in Turkey.
May 18: Speaking to Reuters, Davutoglu said the Tehran administration had showed its political will with the uranium swap agreement to overcome difference of opinion with the West, and it was not the right time to debate new United Nations (UN) sanctions on Iran.
May 21: Davutoglu met UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in Istanbul.
May 22: UN Secretary General Ban delivered a speech during a luncheon that Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan hosted in honor of delegates attending the UN Conference on Somalia in Istanbul. During his speech, Ban thanked Erdogan for his leadership and commitment to several world issues.
- State Minister Bagis had a meeting in Istanbul with Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos of Spain, the rotating president of the EU.
May 25: Davutoglu spoke in an international meeting on support to Israeli-Palestinian peace process in Istanbul, and said, "Palestinian State should not remain as a half state and half community. This status quo cannot continue, and there should be a Palestinian state. This state should have a strong economy, a permanent regional integrity and territorial integrity."
- The 64th Meeting of Turkey-EU Joint Parliament Committee was held in Istanbul.
May 30: A Turkish Day Parade took place in Hannover, Germany. Bagis also participated in the parade and later left for Italy on a two-day formal visit.
May 31: Turkey called on the UN Security Council to convene in an extraordinary meeting after Israeli soldiers attacked on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla that killed nine Turks.
- Davutoglu proceeded to the United States from Brazil, cancelled his talks in Washington, D.C. and attended the UN Security Council meeting in New York.
- Turkey decided to recall its ambassador Oguz Celikkol in Israel to Turkey.
- State Minister Egemen Bagis, who was visiting Italy, commented on the Israeli attack and said, "it is impossible to accept such an attack on a humanitarian aid ship. I strongly condemn the attack, which can no way be justified. It is something that a state cannot do."
JUNE
June 1: Davutoglu went to Washington, D.C. after attending the extraordinary meeting of the UN Security Council, and met U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and U.S. National Security Adviser James Jones.
- State Minister Egemen Bagis called on the international community to show a decisive reaction to the Israeli attack on Gaza-bound aid flotilla, and said, "if the world remains silent to such a massacre in the 21st century, it will be the beginning of some other agonies. From now on, a period in which the rightful and the humanitarian wins should begin.
June 2: Davutoglu returned to Turkey from the United States.
- Massoud Barzani, the head of regional administration in north of Iraq, arrived in Turkey to hold talks.
June 3: Two military planes carrying Turkish citizens who were wounded in the Israeli attack on an aid flotilla landed at Ankara’s Etimesgut airport.
- Davutoglu met Barzani in Ankara.
- Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt and Turkey’s State Minister for EU and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis inaugurated the Swedish Palace, in other words, Swedish Consulate General in Istanbul after it was renovated.
June 6: Davutoglu travelled to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to attend a meeting of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) regarding Israeli attack on Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
- During the meeting, Davutoglu defined the attack as "the September 11 attack on Turkey", and said the Israeli attack would have a deep effect on regional and global perspectives, and nothing would be the same from now on.
June 7: Davutoglu came together with Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmay Rassoul and Pakistani Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi in a Turkey-Afghanistan-Pakistan Trilateral Meeting.
- State Minister Egemen Bagis left for Brussels on a formal visit.
June 8: Davutoglu met his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Motaki in Istanbul on the sidelines of the Third Heads of State and Government Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA).
- State Minister Egemen Bagis met European Commissioner for maritime affairs and fisheries Maria Damanaki.
June 9: Davutoglu gathered together with Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa and Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi in Istanbul on the sidelines of Turkish-Arab Cooperation Forum.
- State Minister Egemen Bagis met European Commissioner for enlargement Stefan Fule and European Commissioner for home affairs in Brussels.
- Holding a press conference at Turkey’s Permanent Representation to the UN, Bagis said NATO could not remain silent to the Israeli attack on Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
June 10: Turkish-Arab Cooperation Forum opened with a ceremony also attended by Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
- At the end of the third meeting of foreign ministers of the forum, Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu read the joint declaration which said relations among Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria were boosted within the scope of political dialogue, economic and cultural interaction.
June 11: State Minister Egemen Bagis met French Minister of European Affairs Pierre Lellouche in Istanbul.
June 14: Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu went to Oslo, Norway upon an invitation at his Norwegian counterpart Jonas Gahr Store. Davutoglu met Ine Marie Soreide Erikson, the head of Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defense at the Norwegian Parliament.
- State Minister Egemen Bagis met former Belgian prime minister Wilfried Martens, who is actually the president of the European People’s Party, in Istanbul.
June 15: Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu came together Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store in Oslo.
June 16: Davutoglu met ambassadors of the United States, Britain, Germany and France to Turkey, and debated Iran’s nuclear energy file and Israeli attack on Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
- A commission, set up to assess the Israeli attack on aid ships, had its second meeting under the chairmanship of Foreign Minister Davutoglu and Justice Minister Sadullah Ergin.
June 17: Woodrow International Center honored Davutoglu with "Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service."
June 18: President Dervis Eroglu of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) arrived in Ankara to hold talks.
June 20-21: Davutoglu went to Kazakhstan on a two-day working visit. Davutoglu met his Kazakh counterpart Kanat Saudabayev.
- As he returned to Turkey from Kazakhstan, Davutoglu met Alexander Downer, the UN secretary general’s special adviser on Cyprus.
June 22: Davutoglu met his Croatian counterpart Gordan Jandrokovic and Foreign Minister Sven Alkalaj of Bosnia-Herzegovina in Istanbul on the sidelines of Southeast European Cooperation Council summit.
- State Minister Egemen Bagis met European Commissioner for enlargement Stefan Fule in Istanbul.
June 27-28: Bagis left for Lindau, Germany to attend the 60th Nobel Prize Meeting. On June 28, Bagis proceeded to Romania and met President Emil Boc.
June 30: The EU opened negotiations with Turkey on food safety, veterinary and phytosanitary policy in a ceremony attended by Foreign Minister Davutoglu, State Minister Bagis and Agriculture and Rural Affairs Minister Mehdi Eker.
JULY
July 1: Foreign Minister Davutoglu’s book on "Strategic Depth-Turkey’s International Position" was translated into Greek.
- Davutoglu said Israeli Minister of Industry & Trade Benjamin Ben-Eliezer, representing Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu, demanded a meeting. "And we held a meeting," he said.
July 2: State Minister Egemen Bagis met Kalypso Nicolaidis, a member of EU Reflection Group.
July 3: Davutoglu left for Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan to attend inauguration ceremony of President Roza Otunbaeva.
July 6: Speaking at the parliament, Davutoglu said the government was not rejecting the policies of previous governments. "However, new conditions require new policies, and there can be changes in policies when international conjuncture changes," he said.
July 8: Davutoglu left for London, Britain on a formal visit, and met British Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs William Hague. The minister delivered a speech on role of transatlantic relations in the new world order at the Chatham House.
- State Minister Egemen Bagis left for Croatia on a formal visit.
July 9: Davutoglu interviewed with the British Financial Times and said Turkey-Israel relations were at a critical stage, and what would happen in upcoming weeks and months depended on Israel’s attitude.
July 10: State Minister Egemen Bagis met Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hashim Thaci in Dubrovnik, Croatia.
July 13: Turkey-EU Ministerial Political Dialogue Meeting took place in Istanbul. Turkey’s Foreign Minister Davutoglu; State Minister Egemen Bagis; European Commissioner for enlargement Stefan Fule; Catherine Ashton, high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy; attended the meeting.
July 14: Davutoglu travelled to Lisbon, Portugal on a formal visit. Davutoglu came together with Parliament Speaker Jaime Gama and Foreign Minister Luis Amado.
July 17: Davutoglu went to Kazakhstan to attend an informal foreign ministers meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
July 19: Davutoglu paid a working visit to Syria, and met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri.
July 20: Davutoglu left for Afghanistan to attend Kabul conference aiming at Afghanistan’s development and stability, and met Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
July 21: Davutoglu paid a visit to Vietnam to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit. Vietnam’s President Nguyen Minh Triet received Davutoglu, who also held talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem.
July 25: Davutoglu gathered together with his Brazilian counterpart Celso Amorim and Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Motaki in Istanbul. Turkey briefed representatives of P5+1 countries (five permanent members of the UN Security Council including the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France plus Germany) on the meeting.
July 17: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met British Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs William Hague over breakfast, and German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle over dinner.
July 31: Davutoglu spoke to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon by phone, and exchanged views on world developments.
AUGUST
August 1: Davutoglu said the UN commission set up to investigate the Israeli attack on Gaza-bound aid flotilla would confirm supremacy of international law.
August 4: Foreign Minister Davutoglu had phone talks with Lebanese Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton regarding incidents that killed four people across Israeli-Lebanese border.
- Davutoglu interviewed with Russia’s state radio and RIA Novosti news agency and said Turkey and Russia had sincere and clear dialogue in bilateral relations, regional and international issues. He also said, "we have completed the process of eliminating past prejudices and creating mutual confidence.
August 6: Davutoglu met Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas in the Greek island of Rhodes.
August 10: Foreign Minister Davutoglu held a joint press conference with his Belgian counterpart Steven Vanackere and said, "Turkey sees regional issues and its EU strategic goal as approaches complementary to each other."
August 11: State Minister Egemen Bagis met Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Steven Vanackere in Istanbul.
August 13: Davutoglu and his Mexican counterpart Patricia Espinosa signed a cooperation program and memorandum of understanding following their meeting in Ankara.
August 18: State Minister Egemen Bagis left for New York to attend a high-level meeting of the UN Security Council that would focus on flood disaster in Pakistan.
August 25: Davutoglu received Sadettin Ergec, chairman of Iraqi Turkmen Front, in Ankara.
August 31: Foreign Minister Davutoglu met Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas.
SEPTEMBER
September 1: Turkey undertook the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council for a month.
- Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu watched a 2010 World Basketball Championship match between Greece and Turkey together with Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas in Ankara.
- Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s spouse Emine Erdogan went to Pakistan to hand over financial and medical assistance to flood-hit Pakistan. During the visit, Emine Erdogan presented the Pakistani executives 3 million Turkish liras-TL (1.9 billion USD) of monetary assistance and 1 million TL (649,000 USD) of medicine.
September 10: Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu spoke to U.S. Secretary of State by phone, and exchanged views on Middle East peace process, Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran and FIBA World Championship.
September 11: Davutoglu met Catherine Ashton, high representative of the EU for foreign affairs and security policy, in Brussels. During the meeting, Ashton underlined importance of strategic dialogue between Turkey and the EU and reaffirmed support to Turkey’s full membership.
- Davutoglu attended "Gymnich" informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.
- After he returned to Turkey from Belgium, Davutoglu came together with Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi in Istanbul.
September 15: U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and briefed him on the recent developments regarding Middle East peace process.
- Davutoglu met foreign ministers of countries participating in the Tenth Heads of State and Government Summit of the Turkic Speaking Countries. Delegates set up the Secretariat General of Turkic Speaking Countries Cooperation Council in Istanbul.
September 16: Davutoglu had a meeting with former Finnish president Martti Ahtisaari in Ankara.
September 18: Independent Turkey Commission, known as eminent persons, visited Diyarbakir and Istanbul.
September 19: Davutoglu attended a meeting to help flood-hit Pakistan on the sidelines of the 65th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York.
September 21: Foreign Minister Davutoglu hosted a reception in honor of least developed countries at the Turkish Culture House in New York.
September 22: Davutoglu attended NATO-Russia Council meeting in New York, and highlighted importance of practical cooperation between the alliance and Russia.
- Davutoglu met Foreign Minister Sven Alkalaj of Bosnia-Herzegovia and Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Jandrokovic in New York, and debated political and economic cooperation.
September 23: Davutoglu had a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in which they debated Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, Middle East peace process and Israeli attack on Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
September 24: A group, named friends of peace mediators, was set up with initiatives of Davutoglu and Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb.
- State Minister Egemen Bagis came together with ambassadors of EU member states over a working meal in Istanbul.
September 25: Davutoglu met his Iranian counterpart Manuchehr Motaki at the UN headquarters in New York. Later, Davutoglu attended meetings of the Alliance of Civilizations, Organization of the Islamic Conference, and a meeting on Sudan.
September 26: Foreign Minister Davutoglu gathered together with his Jordanian counterpart Nasser Judeh, Syrian counterpart Walid Mualem, and Lebanese Foreign Minister Ali al-Shami in New York. The ministers agreed to cooperate in trade, energy, transportation and tourism.
- Davutoglu met his British counterpart William Hague. Hague congratulated Turkey on a summit entitled peace-keeping held at the UN Security Council. Hague and Davutoglu took up Cyprus and Iran’s nuclear file.
September 27: Davutoglu chaired a meeting on fight against terrorism held at the UN Security Council under the rotating presidency of Turkey.
- Davutoglu later met UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who had appointed Turkey’s Deputy Foreign Undersecretary Rauf Engin Soysal as his special representative for assistance to Pakistan.
September 28: State Minister Egemen Bagis had a meeting with European Commissioner for enlargement Stefan Fule in Brussels.
September 29: Davutoglu met representatives of Balkan associations and Turkish academicians in Boston. Speaking at the Harvard University, Davutoglu said Turkey was planning to open a new field named "science diplomacy."
September 30: Foreign Minister Davutoglu announced that Turkey would continue to assume the Kabul central command of the International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF) for one more year as of November 1.
OCTOBER
October 3: Turkey-Syria High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council convened in the Syrian port city of Latakia . The meeting reviewed a series of agreement previously signed by the council and laid down a road map for future cooperation. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu met his Syrian counterpart Walid Muallem before the council meeting.
October 4: Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan paid an official visit to Bulgaria and met with Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov. Construction of a dam at the Turkish-Bulgarian border in order to prevent torrential floods as well as bilateral relations and trade between the two countries were discussed during the meeting.
- Speaking at a social event of the Foreign Ministry Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, said Turkey closely monitored the events in flood-struck Pakistan.
- During an official visit to Syria,Turkish State Minister for foreign trade Zafer Caglayan said that Turkey would abide by the UN decision to impose new round of sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program noting however that decisions made by the United States did not bind Turkey.
October 6: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu met with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Rafi al-Issawi in Ankara. The two discussed the political deadlock in efforts to form the new government in Iraq, in the aftermath of the general elections.
- Davutoglu said that the absence of a strong and stable Iraqi government negatively affected Turkey’s struggle against terrorism.
- The Turkish foreign minister who met the same day with Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs Radoslaw Sikorski told a joint press conference after the meetting that he believed Turkey-EU relations would gain momentum during the Polish term presidency of the union.
October 7: NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen visited Turkey and met with Turkish Premier Erdogan and Foreign Minister Davutoglu to ask for Turkey’s support for the NATO’s new draft concept document as well as the proposed reforms.
- Davutoglu said the NATO-EU partnership was high on agenda in the meeting.
October 8: Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao paid an official visit to Turkey, during which several agreements were signed between the two countries.
October 12: Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu who met with his French counterpart urged France to extend more support to Turkey’s European Union membership during a joint press conference held after the meeting. Davutoglu also called on France to ease visa procedures to Turkish nationals.
October 14: Foreign and Defence Ministers of the NATO member countries gathered in Brussels to discuss the new strategic concept of the alliance, which will be submitted to the approval of the leaders in the upcoming Lisbon summit between November 19-20. Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul represented Turkey at the meeting where the missile defense system the U.S. wants to deploy in Europe and NATO reforms were also discussed.
October 17: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu attended the high-level strategic dialogue meeting between Turkey and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in Kuwait. Foreign ministers of GCC countries as well as GCC Secretary General Abdul Rahman Al-Attiyah attended the meeting.
October 19: Turkish Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul who received the U.S. Distinguished Defense Award,said a U.S.-proposed missile defense plan should be discussed and developed under NATO roof.
October 20: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu paid a one-day visit to Bosnia-Herzegovina to talk to Bosnian political leaders in the aftermath of general elections held in Bosnia on October 3 and express Turkey’s support.
October 22: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Greek counterpart George Papandreou met on the sidelines of the summit of the Mediterranean Climate Change Initiative. Erdogan, told a press conference with Papandreou that Turkish-Greek relations would rise to the future on solid foundations.
- Turkey expressed regret on Friday over Israel’s recent approval of tenders to build new settlement units in East Jerusalem. Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the initiative to build new settlements in the region, caused concerns and created doubts about Israel?s sincerity about the peace process.
October 23: Turkish State Minister and Chief Negotiator for EU talks Egemen Bagis met with Belgian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Steven Vanackere over breakfast in Istanbul.
- Turkey and Britain signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in environment chapter in Turkey’s European Union accession talks. Turkey’s Chief EU Negotiator Bagis and Britain’s Minister for EU David Lidington signed the memorandum of understanding after a joint press conference in Istanbul on the sidelines of the 7th Bogazici Conference.
October 25: Turkey’s Chief Negotiator for European Union talks Bagis met with Greek Deputy Premier Spyros Kouvelis who came to Ankara to participate in a meeting of the Turkish-Greek Joint Economic Committee. Later in the day, Ankara hosted the opening meeting of the Turkey-Greece Joint Economic Committee (JEC) designed to boost trade and business between the two countries. After the meeting Turkey and Greece signed the Fourth Term Protocol of Turkey-Greece Joint Economic Committee (JEC)
October 26: Nechirvan Barzani, Deputy Chairman of Iraq’s Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), met with top Turkish officials and exchanged views on efforts to form a new government in Iraq. Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu said Turkey did not discriminate between ethnic groups in Iraq, over a working lunch in Ankara.
- During a visit to Nakhichevan, Turkey’s Foreign Trade Minister Zafer Caglayan, said Turkey would not open its border and develop commercial relations with Armenia unless a solution to Karabakh problem was found. Turkey shut down its border and cut off diplomatic ties with Armenia in 1993 after Armenian army forces occupied Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region.
- Turkey’s Chief Negotiator for Bagis criticised EU countries for slowing down the accession process, with preconditions not related with the content of negotiation chapters, in his adress to the 65th session of the Turkey-EU Joint Parliamentary Commission (JPC) hosted by the European Parliament in Brussels.
- EU Commissioner for Enlargement, Stefan Fule, who also addressed the JPC, welcomed the election of members of Turkey’s Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutor’s, directly by the votes of 12,000 judges and prosecutors. Fule said the amendment package approved by 58 percent of the Turkish people was a landmark for Turkey in many areas including basic rights and liberties and public administration.
October 27: Turkey’s Chief Negotiator for European Union talks Egemen Bagis on Wednesday met with Hungarian Foreign Minister Janos Martonyi in capital Budapest.
- Speaking to reporters in a joint press conference after their meeting, Bagis said he expected that the Hungarian presidency of the European Union would take important steps in removing what he described as "unreasonable, meaningless and unnecessary" visa procedures on Turkey.
October 28: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu travelled to China on a five day visit, during which he visited, Kashgar and Urumchi in Xinjiang-Uighur Autonomous Republic and major Chinese cities; Shanghai, Xi?an and Beijing.
October 31: Turkey welcomed the agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia on several issues during a meeting hosted by President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, "we welcome that Azerbaijani and Armenian leaders agreed on several humanitarian issues during a summit hosted by Russian President Medvedev."
NOVEMBER
November 3: Istanbul hosted the Fourth Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan (RECCA). In his address to the meeting Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu said that there was no other remedy than regional cooperation in coping with problems in Afghanistan. Appearing at a joint press conference with Davutoglu the same day, Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmay Rassoul, in a similar fashion, said, ?Military solution is not the only option to put an end to the war and ensure peace in our country.? The conference co-chaired by the governments of Turkey and Afghanistan, lasted two days.
- Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan who paid a visit to Pristina said Turkey was ready assume a mediator role between Kosovo and Serbia if the two countries requested it.
November 4: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu had a telephone conversation with President Dervis Eroglu of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) on Thursday. Davutoglu and Eroglu assessed recent developments in Cyprus as well as the negotiation process and exchanged views on a tripartite meeting which would take place in New York on November 18 upon an invitation from the UN Secretary General.
- Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas Maduro Moros who paid a visit to Turkey, invited Turkish businessmen to invest in the Orinoco region of his country urging Turkey to scale up investments in the region. Appearing at a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu, Moros said Venezuela was home to the largest oil reserves in the world.
November 7: Turkey’s foreign minister traveled to Iraq to hold meetings with officials on efforts aiming to establish the new Iraqi government. Ahmet Davutoglu, first visited Irbil, and met with Massoud Barzani, the head of the regional administration in north of Iraq. ?Turkey wants establishment of a secure and stable Iraq, and is exerting efforts to that end," Davutoglu was quoted as saying before meeting Barzani.
- Iran announced that it was willing to hold negotiations with the P5+1 group (the UN Security Council’s 5 permanent members and Germany) in Turkey.
November 8: Concluding his trip to Iraq, Turkish Foreign Minister proceeded to capital Abu Dhabi of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Monday. Davutoglu met with Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Development of bilateral economic and commercial relations and making a free trade agreement between the two countries were high on the agenda during the meeting.
November 9: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu arrived in Rome on an official trip, after completing his visit to Saudi Arabia to attend Turkey-Italy Forum together with Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini. Davutoglu and Frattini held a tete-a-tete meeting after the forum, and held a joint press conference. Davutoglu and his Frattini wrote a joint article, in the Italian newspaper La Repubblica with the title "European Union should not Close Doors to Turkey" urging the EU to support Turkey’s ongoing EU reforms. Davutoglu and Frattini in the joint article criticized that some EU member countries were prejudiced against Turkey’s full membership. We should do our best for a diplomatic solution. We don’t want a nuclear problem in our region. We don’t want new tensions," Davutoglu was quoted as saying.
- The release of EU Commision?s country report on Turkey. The Turkish chief negotiator for talks with the European Union (EU) Bagis welcomed the report as the most positive and encouraging report released so far.
- The Turkish Foreign Ministry also welcomed the progress report.
November 10: Turkey has taken over the Chair of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (COE) from Macedonia with a ceremony held in Strasbourg on Wednesday.
During his visit to Strasbourg, Davutoglu met with Council of Europe High Commissioner for Human Rights Thomas Hammarberg and COE’s Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland. Davutoglu also signed the Council of Europe Convention on Cybercrime and the Additional Protocol to the Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons on behalf of Turkey.
November 16: Turkey’s state Chief negotiator for EU talks Bagis received on Tuesday a religious freedom award in Brussels. The American and European Orthodox Churches honored Egemen Bagis with the award of religious freedom for his contributions to initiatives in Turkey regarding religious minorities and efforts to build a bridge between different cultures and civilizations.
November 17: Turkey’s Chief Negotiator for EU talks Bagis paid an official visit to Ireland where he met Irish Foreign Minister Michael Martin and Minister of State for EU Affairs Dick Roche.
November 19: NATO heads of state and government summit begun in Lisbon, Portugal. President Abdullah Gul represented Turkey in the summit. Nato Member countries approved the new strategic concept of the alliance, NATO reforms as well as the the missile defense system the U.S. wants to deploy in Europe.
November 20: Turkish President Gul welcomed the new strategic concept adopted by NATO countries at Lisbon summit. Speaking to reporters in Lisbon, Gul said the new concept was in line with Turkey’s expectations.
November 26: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu discussed Iran’s nuclear program with Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili on the phone. Jalili called Davutoglu on the phone and the two officials took up the negotiations which would be pursued between Iran and 5+1 group (the U.S., Britain, China, France, Russia and Germany) about the nuclear program.
November 27: Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu, who was named as one of the "top 100 global thinkers" list of Foreign Policy magazine arrived in Washington, D.C. to attend the special event on the occasion of the announcement of the list and to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, National Security Advisor Tom Donilon as well as a number of leading congressmen.
November 29: The day saw the much anticipated release of classified U.S diplomatic cables by the whistle-blowing website Wikileaks. Following the release of the diplomatic cables by Wikileaks, Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu said that the documents would not change main principles of Turkish foreign policy or Turkey’s perspective on Turkish-U.S. relations. "The documents will not affect Turkey’s foreign policy and strategies towards countries in those reports," Davutoglu told Turkish reporters in Washington D.C. after his meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
- Commenting later on his meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Davutoglu said the United States had apologized to Turkey for the documents posted on Wikileaks.
November 30: Also commenting on the issue President Gul said the release of thousands of secret cables of U.S. diplomats could not harm political stability in Turkey, but could however cause lack of confidence in diplomatic relations in the globe.
DECEMBER
December 3: Turkey sent two CL-125 fire fighting airplanes to Israel, after a fire broke out in Haifa city on Thursday. Israeli Premier Benjamin Netanyahu called Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and said he appreciated Turkey’s gesture. Erdogan repeated his earlier call for Israel to apologize and pay compensation to restore relations strained after the May 31 Israeli raid on Gaza-bound aid ships.
- Turkish President Abdullah Gul ruled out participation of Israel in the NATO missile shield project. In an interview with Euronews, Gul said that the missile defense system of NATO was restricted to only NATO members.
December 4: Turkey took action to give a helping hand to the Balkans following the recent flood disaster in the region. Turkish Armed Forces sent three evacuation helicopters and Turkish relief agency, the Red Crescent, sent a truckload of blankets and tents to Albania.
December 6: Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioglu met with an Israeli member of the UN Panel investigating the Flotilla Incident, Yosef Ciechanover.
- Government spokesman Deputy Premier Cemil Cicek said the Turkish government wanted to normalize relations with Israel.
- Turkish President Gul said Israel should give up building new settlements and start displaying a positive stance for the continuation of the peace talks with Palestine, following a tete-a-tete meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
December 7: Turkey decorated the Pakistani prime minister with a state medal of honor on Tuesday. Pakistani Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani received a state medal of honor from President Abdullah Gul for his contributions to friendly relations between the two countries.
- Turkey’s State Minister for EU affairs and Chief EU negotiator Egemen Bagis who met with Danish Foreign Minister Lene Espersen, in Copenhagen, said following the meeting that there was no shift in Turkey’s axis.
- Iran and major world powers agreed to continue talks on Iran’s nuclear program in late January in Istanbul, EU’s foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton told Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Tuesday.
December 9: Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu said news reports about talks between Turkish and Israeli officials in Swiss city of Geneva were totally speculative. During a joint news conference with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Mualem, Davutoglu acknowledged that Ministry of Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioglu met with Israeli officials in Geneva, as a new atmosphere to mend the fences with Israel was born after Turkey sent fire-fighter planes to Israel to help put out the fire in Haifa, but rejected the news reports about those talks as totally speculative.
December 10: Speaking to the media after his meeting with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon in New York, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said continuation of the raw between Turkey and Israel over the Mavi Marmara incident did not serve stability in the Middle East.
- Turkey’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Turkey was still expecting Israel to pay compensation and apologize to Turkey for its armed attack on a Gaza-bound aid ship.
December 12: U.S. President Barack Obama phoned Turkish Premier Erdogan to express his sadness over the leaking of U.S. Diplomatic ties. Wikileaks disclosures will not harm diplomatic relations between Turkey and United States, a statement from the office of the Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan quoted him as telling U.S. President Barack Obama on a telephone conversation on Saturday.
December 13: Turkish ministry of foreign affairs said on Monday that Turkey was pleased with Kosovo’s first general election that was held after the country declared its independency.
December 14: EU Council expressed deep regret over Turkey’s failure to open its ports to Greek Cypriot vessels in its "Enlargement Conclusions".
December 15: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Tuesday met with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in New York ahead of a Security Council session on Iraq.
- Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said Ankara remained enthusiastic about EU membership despite stalling negotiations, during his visit to Turkey.
- Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) on Wednesday released a statement condemning the terrorist attack today at the Imam Hussain Mosque in Iranian city of Chabahar.
December 16: Turkey which is assuming the Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe (COE) hosted a conference titled "Prevention of terrorism: prevention tools, legal instruments and their implementation".
December 17: Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu phoned U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and requested from the U.S. administration to become part of an effort to defeat an Armenian resolution that may be brought to the agenda of the U.S. House of Representatives.
December 20: Hungary has expressed commitment that it would maintain the current speed of Turkey’s membership negotiations with the European Union during Budapest’s term presidency. Belgium is set to handover the rotating helm of the EU to Hungary January 2011.
- Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama warning that the Armenian resolution could strain relations.
December 21: Assistant Secretary of the U.S. State Department Philip Crowley said they were in touch with the U.S. House of Representatives regarding an Armenian resolution that might be brought to the floor of the House on Tuesday.
- Turkey’s Embassy in Washington, D.C. has intensified lobbying efforts against the Armenian resolution . Turkish Ambassador in Washington, D.C. Namik Tan personally telephoned Congress members to win their support against the resolution.
- Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu said the cooperation between Turkey and Syria served as a model for other countries in the region and carried the potential to change the ill fate of the Middle East. In his address to a ministerial meeting of the Turkey-Syria High Level Strategic Cooperation Council in Ankara, bringing together 26 ministers from the two countries.
- Turkey and Syria signed an agreement to cooperate in fight against terror and terrorist organizations after the Council meeting.
- Premier Erdogan welcomed the establishment of the new Iraqi government. Appearing at a joint press conference with his Syrian counterpart Muhammed Naci Itri, Erdogan said he was pleased with the end of the political deadlock in Iraq with the establishment of the new Iraqi Government under Nur al Maliki’s leadership.
- Greek Cypriot fans attacked players of Turkish basketball team Pinar Karsiyaka who were in south part of Lefkosa to face Apoel in FIBA Eurochallenge Group C match Tuesday night. Apoel fans threw stones and gas bombs right after the referee blew the last whistle on the court, a club executive told the AA.
December 23: U.S. House of Representatives decided not to take up the resolution on the Armenian allegations on Wednesday.
- Commenting later on the assault of Greek Cyprot hooligans on a Turkish basketball team the earlier day, minister Davutoglu said the attack on Turkish basketball team staged by Greek Cypriot hooligans, after a EuroChallange game in Lefkosa showed necessary security precautions were not taken.
- Turkey hosted 11th summit of heads of state and government of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) in Istanbul. Turkey took over ECO rotating presidency from Iran during the summit.
- Istanbul hosted Turkey-Afghanistan-Pakistan trilateral summit at the Ciragan Palace. President Gul had separate meetings with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari on the sidelines of the summit.
AA
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu paid visits to a number of countries and hosted his counterparts in Turkey in 2010.
