LOC23:48
20:48 GMT
(With POL-IRAQ-NEIGHBORS series)
ISTANBUL, Nov 3 (KUNA) -- Egypt and Turkey signed on Saturday a memo for a
bilateral framework strategic dialogue, the first in the history of the two
countries' relations.
Egyptian Foreign Minister, Ahmed Abul-Gheit, signed the framework memo with
his Turkish counterpart, Ali Babacan, on the sidelines of the wide-scale
meeting of the Iraq neighbor countries held in Istanbul.
The two countries concluded the framework realizing their joint
responsibility for working together to support peace, stability and
development in the Middle East and East of the Mediterranean, Abul-Gheit told
a joint press conference with Babacan.
He added that the Egyptian-Turkish strategic dialogue would cover a range
of issues of top priority to both countries such as the region's hot issues,
countering terrorism, extremism and combating the spread of weapons of mass
destruction.
This also includes working together at the multiparty level to conclude
solutions to the regional and international problems as well as encouraging
regional parties to handle the issues of "regional nature."
For his part, Babacan told the conference that the memo covered political,
economic and cultural cooperation providing for setting up mechanisms for
strategic dialogue between the two countries at the level of the Foreign
Ministers.
It was agreed to hold annual meetings between the Foreign Ministers and
senior officials for consultations on the key issues on the international
scene. (end)
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