Seventh Ambassadors Conference continued with the regional panes and with the presentations of related Ministries and Institutions.

At the morning session of the Conference, Minister of Justice Mr. Bekir Bozdağ, Minister for EU Affairs Mr. Volkan Bozkır and Minister of Interior Mr. Efkan Ala informed the Ambassadors on the work of Reform Action Group. At the panel Turkey’s dedication in complying with the EU acquis communautaire was stressed and many reforms that are undertaken such as right of individual application to European Court of Human Rights, establishment of the Ombudsman Institution and the amendment to the Constitution that puts international agreements over national law in case of a conflict concerning fundamental rights and freedoms was pointed.

Secretary-General of Council of Europe also addressed the Ambassadors on the third day of the conference. Before his remarks, Foreign Minister Çavuşoğlu mentioned that Turkey will increase its contribution to Council of Europe up to approximately 33 million Euros and by doing that it will become the 6th largest contributor to the Council of Europe’s budget. Following this statement, Jagland stated that this step will increase the numbers of Turkish members in the Council of Europe Secretariat and in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and therefore will strengthen Turkey’s standing in Europe. Stating that Turkey is an integral part of Europe, Jagland said, “If Turkey does not have a bright future, then there is no bright future for Europe, too”.

Speaker of the Parliament of Turkey, Mr. Cemil Çiçek also hosted the Turkish Ambassadors at lunch.

Afterwards, the Conference continued with the Cyprus panel organized with the attendance of Deputy Prime Minister Mr. Bülent Arınç; the panel on Turkey’s humanitarian and developmental assistance with the attendance of Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş and Director General of Turkish Red Crescent Ahmet Lütfi Akar, and the panel on “Security Issues” organized with the attendance of Deputy Chief of the General Staff Full-General Yaşar Güler and Undersecretary of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), Mr. Hakan Fidan.