ANKARA: Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji arrived at the tightly guarded Ankara airport yesterday after a 10-hour flight from Beijing, kicking off his two-week tour of Turkey, Egypt and Kenya.
About 3,000 armed police were deployed along the streets from the airport to the hotel where the Chinese delegation will stay.
A welcoming ceremony is due to be held this morning,when the Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit will greet Premier Zhu. Then the two leaders will hold formal talks and oversee the signing of a series of accords dealing with bilateral cooperation in agriculture, telecommunications and customs offices affairs.
Today's talk between the two leaders is expected to be dominated by in-depth discussion of the current tense situation in the Middle East and the joint efforts of China and Turkey to combat international terrorism.
The length of Zhu's visit and the size of his high-profile entourage, which includes Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan, Minister of Agriculture Du Qinglin, Vice-Minister of the State Development Planning Commission Wang Chunzheng and Vice-Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation (MOFTEC) Wei Jianguo, underline China's strong desire to deepen its political and economic ties with the three countries.
Zhu's four-day Turkey visit is the first by a Chinese premier since 1986. In a written statement released on his arrival, Zhu said that China and Turkey have enjoyed friendly relations for centuries and the ancient Silk Road is historical testimony to the close links between the two peoples.
Since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1971 - particularly in recent years- remarkable progress has been made by the two nations in developing their co-operative relations in political, economic and other areas, Zhu said.
"We are quite satisfied with this achievement," said the Chinese premier, adding that Sino-Turkish cooperation could be broadened through joint efforts in the future.
Zhu expressed his sincere hope in the statement that his current tour would help push friendly relations between the two countries to "a new height."
Bilateral trade will also be one of the priorities for tomorrow's talks between Zhu and Evecit, said a MOFTEC senior official.
Today Zhu is also scheduled to meet Acting President Omer Izgi, also speaker of the Turkish Grand National Assembly, and Devlet Bahceli, the deputy prime minister.
(China Daily April 16, 2002)
