On March 11, 2011, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin and Deputy Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey Mehmet Fatih Ceylan held the 7th round of annual political consultations in Ankara.

The Sides exchanged views on a wide range of issues of bilateral cooperation, European integration, cooperation within international organizations, energy security, regional and global agenda.

In the course of negotiations, the importance of holding the first meeting of the High Level Strategic Council and ensuring efficiency of this bilateral mechanism in bringing substance and pragmatism into strategic partnership between Ukraine and Turkey were confirmed.

The Sides stressed also the necessity to focus on fostering the practical dimension of sector cooperation in the basic fields as well as providing for the earliest start of negotiations on the free trade area and visa liberalization. Moreover, it was agreed to further strengthen the dialogue on issues of regional security, in particular energy security.

During the visit to Ankara, Mr. Klimkin was received by Turkey’s State Minister for EU Affairs Egemen Bağış. In the course of the meeting, the Sides agreed to share experience in the field of European integration and covered other issues of mutual interest.