PM Erdogan congratulates Van Rompuy on his new job

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday telephoned former Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy to congratulate him on being selected the first president of the European Council. During the conversation, Erdogan told Van Rompuy that he hoped his presidency would help bring Turkish-European Union relations to new heights. A 2004 speech by Van Rompuy has led to concerns, since at that time he warned that Europe's Christian "fundamental values" would be undermined by Turkey's EU membership. But since winning his new post, he has said that his personal views would take a back seat to carrying out EU decisions. In related news, in the runup to the EU's year-end summit, which will review recent developments in Turkey's accession talks, Istanbul will today host a meeting of Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and State Minister and Chief EU Negotiator Egemen Bagis with the EU Troika, made up of EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn, EU Term President Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt, and Diego Lopez Garrido, secretary of state for the EU at Spain's Foreign Ministry, representing the next EU president.