Erdogan-Merkel: Germany wants a stable Turkey

(Patria) - Germany wants a stable Turkey that will strengthen economically in the long term, it was stated today in Berlin at a press conference following the meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Erdogan met with German Chancellor Merkel today in Berlin for a working lunch.

At the very beginning of his address at the joint press conference, Erdogan emphasized that during the meeting with Merkel, a consensus was reached to re-establish the functioning of cooperation mechanisms between the two countries, which have not been working for a long time.

He added that Turkey conveyed to Germany that it expects a more effective fight against terrorist groups.

When asked about Can Dundar, the former editor-in-chief of the Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet who fled to Germany, Erdogan replied:

“This person (Can Dundar) is a convict, an agent, a person who revealed state secrets, according to the decision of the Turkish judiciary,” said Erdogan, emphasizing that it is Turkey's most natural right to seek the extradition of a convict sentenced to five years and 10 months in prison.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel emphasized that her country “wants a stable Turkey that will strengthen economically in the long term”.

“We are working on organizing a quadrilateral summit on Syria with the presidents of Turkey, Russia, and France,” Merkel added.