(GEN) MACEDONIAN DELEGATION VISITS TURKISH PARLIAMENT.ANKARA, Oct 1, 2009 (TUR tur: see ibex. ) -- The chairman of the Turkish Group at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly The NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO-PA), formerly the North Atlantic Assembly, is an inter-parliamentary organization of legislators. Rather than being established by the North Atlantic Treaty, NATO-PA is a separate entity from NATO, although it maintains a close and a Justice and Development (AK) Party deputy from Kirikkale, Vahit Erdem, received a Macedonian delegation headed by Defense Minister Zoran Konjanovski in Ankara on Thursday. Speaking to reporters prior to the meeting with the Macedonians, Erdem said that Macedonia's membership to NATO NATO: see North Atlantic Treaty Organization. NATO in full North Atlantic Treaty Organization International military alliance created to defend western Europe against a possible Soviet invasion. was on hold due to Greece. Turkey extends full support to NATO in order to establish peace and stability in the Balkans, Erdem said. I had prepared reports in support of Macedonia's membership to NATO as part of my duties at the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. I believe that we will witness Macedonia's membership to NATO and the European Union European Union (EU), name given since the ratification (Nov., 1993) of the Treaty of European Union, or Maastricht Treaty, to the European Community (EU) in the future, Erdem said. Konjanovski, in his part, said that Macedonia is thankful to Turkey for the support extended in all fields. The people of Macedonia are aware of the value of Turkey's support. Macedonia's future is getting closer to NATO, Konjanovski said. Macedonia has done homeworks assigned by NATO. We wish to become a NATO member, Konjanovski said. We were disappointed at NATO's summit in Brussels when we were expecting membership. We were prevented from becoming a NATO member by our neighbor Greece. We do deserve NATO membership as we have completed all homeworks. The unfair treatment of Macedonians must end immediately, Konjanovski said. Touching on Turkey's assistance to Macedonia since Macedonia gained independence 19 years ago, Konjanovski said that 450 Macedonian officers received training in Turkey. Turkey has provided a military donation of 16 million USD USD In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the U.S. Dollar. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. to Macedonia, Konjanovski also said. (THROUGH ASIA Asia (ā`zhə), the world's largest continent, 17,139,000 sq mi (44,390,000 sq km), with about 3.3 billion people, nearly three fifths of the world's total population. PULSE) |
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