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ANKARA: Obama set for packed schedule on Turkey visit

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  • ANKARA: Obama set for packed schedule on Turkey visit

    Today's Zaman, Turkey
    March 21 2009


    Obama set for packed schedule on Turkey visit


    US President Barack Obama will travel to Turkey together with his
    wife, Michelle Obama. He will visit both Ankara and Ä°stanbul.

    US President Barack Obama's visit to Turkey has been scheduled with
    trips to both Ankara and Ä°stanbul, as he is due to arrive in
    the Turkish capital on the evening of April 5 for a meeting with
    President Abdullah Gül and one with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
    ErdoÄ?an the following day.

    His stay in Ankara also includes a landmark address to the Turkish
    Parliament and a visit to the mausoleum of Atatürk, founder of
    the modern Turkish Republic. President Obama's wife, Michelle Obama,
    will be accompanying him on the visit, which is his first to a Muslim
    country since taking office on Jan. 20. While Obama meets with
    ErdoÄ?an in his office, Mrs. Obama will meet with
    Mrs. ErdoÄ?an in a separate room, the news station NTV reported
    yesterday.

    Obama and ErdoÄ?an are expected to fly to Ä°stanbul
    together to attend a meeting of the UN-backed Alliance of
    Civilizations initiative there on April 7. It was not clear whether a
    US or Turkish aircraft will be used. Following a lunch hosted by
    ErdoÄ?an, Obama will take a boat tour of the Bosporus. He is
    also expected to hold a joint press conference with ErdoÄ?an
    before wrapping up his visit.

    NTV said more than 10,000 vacation approvals for police officers have
    been cancelled in Ankara, a sign that the strictest security measures
    will be in place during the US president's visit. The visit is seen a
    sign of the Obama administration's willingness to work with Turkey on
    a number of key foreign policy aspects, including the stabilization of
    Afghanistan and Iraq, and Iran's nuclear program. The Turkish
    government is likely to raise the issues of Armenian claims of
    genocide at the hands of Ottoman Turks during World War I and
    cooperation in the fight against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party
    (PKK).



    21 March 2009, Saturday
    TODAY'S ZAMAN Ä°STANBUL
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