Egemen Bağış Accompanies President Gül in His Visit to Latvia and Lithuania

Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bağış accompanied President of Turkish Republic Gül in his visit to Latvia. An official welcoming ceremony was organized for President Gül visitnig Latvia upon the invitation of the President of Latvia Andris Berzins on April 2, 2013.

After bilateral and delegational meetings, Türkiye and Latvia signed a letter of goodwill on cooperation in the area of transport and logistics. The signature ceremony was followed by a joint press conference of the Presidents.

In the press meeting, President of Latvia Berzins expressed Latvias full support to Türkiye’s EU membership. Extending his thanks for Latvia’s support, President Gül itearated his wish for a continuation of this support.

After the press meeting, President Gül laid a wreath to the Latvian Monument of Freedom. As part of his programme, President Gül attended the luncheon organized by Latvia’s Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics in his honour.

After meeting with Latvian Parliament Speaker Solvita Aboltina and visiting the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia as part of his official program in Riga, President Gül attended the closing session of the Türkiye-Latvia Business Forum.

Accompanying President Gül throughout the visit, Minister Bağış held a seperate meeting with the Foreign Minister of Latvia, Edgars Rinkevics.

President Gül, on the last day of his state visit to Latvia, on April 3, 2013, attended the breakfast given by Prime Minister Dombrovskis of Latvia and afterwards visited the Riga Combines Cycle Power Plant which is being constructed by a Turkish firm, GAMA.

President Gül, after completing his official program in Latvia, proceeded to Lithuania to pay a state visit. On the first day of President Gül’s state visit to Lithuania on April 3,2013, an official welcoming ceremony is organized by the President of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaite at the Presidential Palace.  After having a tete-a-tete and chairing delegational talks, the Presidents held a joint press conference.

Accompanying President Gül throughout his official visit, Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bağış held a seperate meeting with the Foreign Minister of Latvia, Linas Antanas Linkevičius.

After the joint press conference, President Gül laid a wreath at the Antakalnis Cemetery. Lastly, President Abdullah Gül and First Lady Hayrünnisa Gül participated in the official dinner hosted in their honor by President Dalia Grybauskaite of Lithuania.

Within the scope of his programme on April 4, 2013, President Gül received ithuanian Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius. Afterwards attending the opening ceremony of the Turkish-Lithuanian Business Forum and delivering a speech, President Gül opened the Islamic Culture and Education Center in Vilnius.

After the opening ceremony Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bağış received teachers and students of “Afyonkarahisar Zübeyde Hanım Kız teknik ve Meslek Lisesi” who are on training  in Vilnius within the framework of Leonardo da Vinci lifelong learning programme.

On the last day of his official visit, President Abdullah Gül met with the Turkish columnists who accompanied him on his state visits to Latvia and Lithuania. After the meeting, President Gül received a delegation of representatives of the Tatar community residing in Lithuania and completed his official visit covering Latvia and Lithuania.