Azerbaijan, Afghanistan and Kazakhstan to join ECOBANK

Azerbaijan, Afghanistan and Kazakhstan will join the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) bank--the founder members of which are Turkey, Iran and Pakistan, diplomatic sources said on Friday.

The participants of the 11th ECO heads of state and government summit agreed to instruct ECOBANK to establish partnership with Asian Development Bank and Islamic Development Bank.

ECOBANK aims to finance development projects in ECO member states.

Turkey's President Abdullah Gul had a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Mahmud Ahmadi-Nejad on the sidelines of 11th ECO heads of state and government summit and Turkey-Afghanistan-Pakistan trilateral summit.

During the meeting, Gul offered condolences over loss of lives in a recent blast and earthquake in Iran.

Ahmadi-Nejad said Iran was ready to extend every type of support to Turkey, which took over the ECO rotating presidency from his country, and welcomed development of bilateral relations and Turkey's influence.

The Iranian president said Turkish-Iranian cooperation would be for the best interests of the region and the world and invited Gul to Tehran.

On Iran's nuclear energy controversy, Iran said, "we sincerely wish that the issue would be solved through diplomacy, and we are exerting efforts as Iran's neighbor and we will
be pleased if we can contribute."

Afghan President Hamid Karzai was another statesmen Gul met on the sidelines of the meeting. Karzai asked for Turkey's assistance to project development in his country. To that end, an Afghan minister will stay in Turkey for some more time to hold talks at Turkey's State Planning Organization.

Turkey has proposed Iran to run a new hospital, whereas Gul and Karzai celebrated the 90th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Afghanistan and Turkey.

President Gul also met Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, and invited Zardari to pay a formal visit to Turkey.

During his meeting with Kyrgyz President Roza Otunbaeva, Gul said the newly-formed government had exhibited a strong leadership in the transition process in Kazakhstan and recommended Kyrgyzstan to attach importance to friendship with neighbors.

Gul said Turkish Council would support Kyrgyzstan, while Otunbaeva said it was now time to deal with economic development and her country was willing to start making use of mineral beds.

President Gul said Kyrgyzstan could call on Turkish companies to operate mineral resources. The two presidents agreed to hold the second conference on assistance to Kyrgyzstan in Istanbul in March.

Moreover, Afghan President Karzai and Pakistani President Zardari had a tete-a-tete dinner at Istanbul's Ciragan Palace and chatted for a long time on Thursday.

ECO is an intergovernmental regional organization established in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey for the purpose of promoting economic, technical and cultural cooperation among the Member States.

In 1992, the Organization was expanded to include seven new members, namely: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Republic of Uzbekistan.

ECO aims to boost cultural, commercial and economic cooperation among its members, and it also targets at establishing a free trade zone by 2015.


/World Bulletin/