First state visit to Turkey from Monaco paid by prince Albert II

Prince Albert II of Monaco who is in Turkey upon the invitation of President Abdullah Gul firstly visited Ataturk's Mausoleum (Anitkabir) prior to his official contacts. Prince Albert II also visited the Anitkabir Museum in the accompany of Jose Badia, Foreign Minister of Monaco, as well as Richard Milonesio, a counselor in the cabinet, and Turkey's Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz. Afterwards, Prince Albert II proceeded to Cankaya Presidential Palace, where he was welcomed by President Abdullah Gul in an official ceremony. The ceremony was also attended by Parliament Speaker Cemil Cicek and Ankara Governor Alaaddin Yuksel. Following the ceremony, Gul and Prince Albert II held a tete-a-tete, and then Gul hosted an official dinner in honor of Prince Albert II.  Speaking at the dinner, Gul said that Turkey was ready to cooperate with Monaco on environmental issues and shared his pleasure with the fact that Turkey will soon become a party to the Agreement on the Conservation of Cetaceans of the Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Contiguous Atlantic Area (ACCOBAMS). "Tourism is a separate field in terms of relations between the two countries. I don't want to talk about this issue in further detail, because you personally know the tourism potential in Turkey. I would like to say that we will be always pleased to host you either for official or tourism purposes," Gul added.  For his part, Prince Albert II said that he was pleased to hear that Turkey would enter into the agreement which was the product of his father's initiatives and thanked Gul for his warm and friendly remarks and approach towards him. As part of his visit, Prince Albert II also met with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan over a luncheon, which was also attended by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. The visit by Prince Albert II to Turkey is of the historic importance in the sense that this is the first state visit from Monaco to Turkey.