Romanian Prime Minister met with Turkish counterpart

Romanian Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu met with his Turkish counterpart on Wednesday to discuss regional issues. Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomed Tariceanu in an official ceremony. He was also to meet Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc and pay a courtesy visit to President Ahmet Necdet Sezer.

The sides are expected to discuss an outbreak of bird flu in Turkey which is also threatening countries in the region. Both countries are vying for European Union membership, with Romania slated to join the bloc in 2007. Turkey opened membership talks with the bloc in October and it was expected to take at least 10 years to join the prestigious club.

Ties between the two countries have been improving in recent years. The bilateral trade volume stands around US$4.2 billion (Ђ3.47 billion), reports the AP. I.L.