Davutoglu: "EU states see Turkey as a rising power"

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu yesterday returned to Turkey after attending a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Stockholm. Speaking about his talks with EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn on the sidelines of the meeting, Davutoglu said, "We spoke about several issues, including the (fall EU) progress report" on Turkey. Stating that expanding democracy is an internal Turkish matters, he added, "But EU member states have shown great interest in Turkey's democratization efforts. They consider Turkey a rising power." He also said that he held a series of bilateral talks with the other participating foreign ministers and told them about Turkey's reform work and recent developments in Turkish-Armenian relations. Davutoglu is set to pay a visit to Georgia today.