Erdogan receives Dutch counterpart

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday held a bilateral meeting with his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte in Ankara. Speaking to reporters in a joint conference after the meeting, Erdogan expressed hope that the Netherlands' support for Turkey in its EU membership bid would continue from now on as well. Erdogan also slammed the EU over its strict visa policy on Turkish citizens, saying, "Latin American countries, which has nothing to do with the EU can get in and out easily. But Turkey, as a negotiating candidate country, is denied visa exemption." For his part, Rutte thanked President Abdullah Gul and Erdogan for inviting him to Turkey, saying that the Dutch Royal family would be visiting Turkey soon. Rutte also congratulated Erdogan for international credit rating agency Fitch's raising Turkey to investment grade. Answering a question on Turkey's EU membership bid, Rutte said Turkey was paying effort to align with the European Union criteria, adding that he believed the country would "certainly join the EU in time." Furthermore, Erdogan hosted a dinner in the honor of Rutte later in the day in Ankara.