Turkish State Minister Bashir Atalay confirmed the participation of the Turkish Prime Minister Rejep Tayyub Erdogan in a summit of the heads of state and governments of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) member-countries to be held Baku from 4 to 5 May 2006, Trend reports citing the Turkish media reports. Atalay said that under the summit it is planned to hold several bilateral meetings.
Concerning Erdogans possible meeting with the Iranian President Mahmud Ahmedinejdet the State Minister said that work over the schedule of the PMs bilateral meetings was underway.
Meanwhile, the Iranian Ambassador to Azerbaijan Afshar Suleymani told journalists that the Iranian leader was going to hold bilateral meetings with the heads of OEC countries. We have appealed to the OEC leaders with a proposal of conducting several bilateral talks, the diplomat underlined.
An agreement on the establishment of the OEC was signed on 14 September 1996 in the Turkish city Izmir among the representatives of Turkey, Iran and Pakistan with respect to develop regional economic cooperation.
The organization assumes special importance for Ankara as an only international economic body which unites all Turkic speaking nations of the former Soviet Union.