Turkish, Azeri, georgian Ministers gather for meeting in Batumi

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu arrived in Georgia, the neighboring country to the east, on Wednesday ahead of a tripartite meeting of Turkish, Azerbaijani and Georgian foreign ministers to be held in the port city of Batumi on Thursday. Paying a two-day visit to the capital city of Tbilisi on Wednesday upon the invitation of Georgian Foreign Minister Maia Panjikidze, Davutoğlu had a meeting with his Georgian counterpart as well as with President Mikheil Saakashvili, Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, Parliament Speaker David Usupashvili and State Minister for Reintegration Paata Zakareishvili, according to the Turkish Foreign Ministry. In a written statement, the Foreign Ministry said that strengthening bilateral relations, increasing regional cooperation as well as economic, energy and security projects will be the main issues discussed during the meetings. On the second day of his visit, Davutoğlu is scheduled to join the trilateral meeting of Turkish, Azerbaijani and Georgian foreign ministers to be held in Batumi. The development of regional cooperation in all areas for mutual benefit will reportedly top the meeting's agenda. The parties are expected to exchange their views on bilateral and regional issues of common interest including strengthening regional stability and security as well. During the meeting, mutual Turkish-Azerbaijani projects, as well as Turkey's strong support for Georgia's NATO bid, will be widely discussed, according to Georgian officials. The meeting was concluded with the Trabzon Declaration outlining the major areas of cooperation between the three countries, ranging from mutual support in international organizations to regional joint projects in energy and transportation.