Turkish PM says command of missile shield system "to be in our hands"

Turkey's prime minister said early on Monday that missile shield system was a step to be taken within the scope of NATO.

Monday, 15 November 2010

Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan said NATO was the center of the missile shield issue, and it was a step to be taken within the framework of NATO.

"If missile shield system is thought to be installed in our territories, its command should definitely be in our hands, otherwise it is impossible for us to accept such a thing," Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul as he returned from South Korea and Bangladesh.

Erdogan said Turkish Armed Forces was working on the issue, and the system would be debated in the NATO Summit to take place in Lisbon on November 19-20.

On his visit to South Korea and Bangladesh, Erdogan said he discussed free trade agreement, energy cooperation and a number of diplomatic, military, cultural, economic and commercial issues with South Korean executives.

Erdogan said he met the president of South Korean automotive firm Hyundai and debated more cooperation and investment opportunities, and he also had a meeting with the executives of stainless steel company which was thinking of investing in Turkey.

Regarding his visit to Bangladesh, Erdogan said he met president, prime minister, foreign minister and finance minister of that country and he signed agreements on allocating plots for Turkish and Bangladeshi embassies in each other's countries.

Erdogan also said he visited an international Turkish school in Bangladesh, the students of which he believed would be honorary envoys and consulates between the two countries.

G-20 meeting

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said early on Monday that strong steps had been made to boost stability of financial systems with the coordination achieved among member countries during the G-20 Summit held in Seoul, South Korea.

Erdogan said he was accompanied by a crowded delegation including State Minister & Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan, State Minister Mehmet Aydin, Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek, Energy & Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz, several other parliamentarians as well as bureaucrats.

Erdogan said he had very fruitful meetings with the world leaders on the sidelines of G-20 Summit, adding his talks both in South Korea and Bangladesh aimed at boosting economic and commercial cooperation.

Speaking about the G-20 Summit held in Seoul, Erdogan said, "the parties reviewed the progress made in countering global economic and financial crisis. The parties agreed on maintaining the studies to fulfill a strong, sustainable and particularly a balanced global growth in the next period."

Erdogan said reform of international finance institutions, which was important for Turkey, was mainly discussed at the summit, noting, "with the efforts of Turkey, development and issues related to the least developed countries were reviewed. As you know, The Least Developed Countries Summit will take place in Turkey in May. Around 6,000 people are expected to join the summit."

Source: World Bulletin.
Link: http://www.worldbulletin.net/news_detail.php?id=66338.