Turkish officials to hold contacts in Davos on IMF, Mideast, Armenia

A meeting is likely to be held with the Armenian foreign minister, as a step towards normalizing relations between the two neighboring countries, Turkish Foreign Minister might Ali Babacan told at a press conference prior to his departure for Davos on Tuesday. Babacan said, however, there is no schedule has been confirmed for the possible meeting.

 

Turkey and Armenia restored dialogue after President Abdullah Gul paid a visit to Yerevan last September. The two neighboring countries do not have any diplomatic relations and the border is closed because of Armenia's invasion of 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory.

 

The leaders of Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan would also be attending the Davos meetings.

 

The invitation-only World Economic Forum is being held from Jan. 28 through to Feb. 1 in Davos-Klosters. More than 40 heads of state have reportedly confirmed they will attend the gathering of leaders from businesses, unions, and non-governmental organizations. Items on the agenda include the global economic turmoil and climate change.

 

PM TO ATTEND MIDEAST SESSION

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan will attend the session of "Gaza: The Case for Middle East Peace".  Israeli President Shimon Peres will also attend the session as a speaker.

 

Erdogan is expected to stress that he did not target the Israeli people in his harsh criticism against the Gaza operation and say that "Anti-Semitism is a crime against humanity just as Islamophobia is," in his speech at the session, Hurriyet daily reported on Tuesday.

 

Secretary General of the Arab League and Washington Post columnist David Ignatius will also attend the session.

 

The Turkish government played an active role to reduce tensions in the Middle East and cut a truce after Israel's three-week long air and ground assault on Gaza which killed more than 1,300 people.

 

However the government came under fire due the harsh rhetoric it used in criticizing Israel.

 

Erdogan also will meet with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on the first of the Davos meetings. The two leaders are expected to hold talks on the energy issues.

 

IMF PROCESS

Another issue that will dominate the Turkish officials’ agenda will be the talks on the new loan with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

 

Turkey and the IMF suspended loan talks for 10 days, and Turkish officials are scheduled to hold talks with fund executives during the Davos meeting. The IMF delegation, currently in Turkey for the talks, is expected to leave Ankara soon.

 

Economy Minister Mehmet Simsek will meet with IMF officials but did not give further details on his contacts. Erdogan said he will meet with the deputy managing director of the IMF.