We have noticed with regret that some media sources reported that, the President and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Turkey did not participate in each other’s respective luncheons and dinners they have hosted in honour of the visiting Heads of State/Government, on the occasion of the 15th Anniversary Summit of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, on 25 June 2007.

The attendance of the President of the Republic to official luncheons or dinners hosted by the Speaker of the Turkish Parliament and/or by the Prime Minister on the occasion of multilateral international meetings, such as the BSCE Summit, or any bilateral visit, is neither customary protocol-wise nor an established tradition of our State, nor is it an international practice. Our Prime Minister has already made a clear statement on this matter in response to a question recently.

The essential point that should be kept in mind on this occasion is that, with the participation of nine Heads of State, two Prime Ministers and 12 Foreign Ministers, this Summit Meeting was held at the highest level since the inaugurational Summit of BSEC in 1992.