Speech at the dinner in honour of the Turkish Minister of Transport, Mr Yildirim
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Minister Yildirim, ladies and gentlemen,
It is an honour for me to receive you here in the Netherlands. These are busy days for you, so let’s have an relaxing evening, a moment among friends.
The ties between our countries go back a long way. Almost 400 hundred years ago, the young Dutch republic opened a diplomatic mission in Istanbul. This building still hosts the Netherlands’ Consulate-General today. Our long-lasting relationship is special.
And the ties between us are still very good today, our countries see eye to eye in a lot of areas. This is true of our heads of state, as the very succesful visit of our Queen Beatrix last year and the visit of your president Sezer in 2001 prove. It’s also proven by other visits. In September 2006, my predecessor, Minister Peijs, visited your country with a large trade mission. Last October, you welcomed Mr Deetman, the mayor of The Hague. And this November the minister of Trade, mr. Heemskerk will visit your country to promote joint ventures in the field of among others maritime affaires and infrastructure. I want to thank you for your hospitality, and for giving us a chance to repay it with your visit here.
Dutch and Turks are doers, builders, entrepreneurs. We share a special interest in transport, public works and infrastructure, which has probably something to do with our geographical positions. The Netherlands is the gateway to Europe, Turkey bridges the gap between the Middle East, Asia and Europe. It is located on the former Silk Route. These natural positions have led us to be traditionally seafaring nations, accustomed to live near the water. During your stay you will visit three Dutch ports and the Delta works. This reflects the Dutch relationship with the sea.
Today, we spoke about maritime affairs, road transport, transport between busy cities, the use of public-private partnership, infrastructure and many other matters. I find it particularly pleasant to be able to exchange ideas with you about issues that we both care about, our differences and similarities. There is mutual interest on both sides, a willingness to learn and work together.
The Netherlands and Turkey can work well together. This is shown in the way our respective ministeries prepare the incoming en outgoing visits. I appreciate this very much. We’ll also work side by side with the preparation of the bilateral conference on March 26th in The Hague. Another fine example of teamwork is ofcourse the Twinning project. This ended in february and the co-operation was very good and successful. Turkey is already quite far in adapting its systems to the ‘acquis communautaire’, which is worth a compliment.
The Twinning project has ended, but there is a new and important development. This is the Agreed Minutes of the Partners for Roads programme by the Directorate-General Public Works and Water Management. The programme strives to help the partners to establish an EU oriented Road Administration, upgrade the road network and develop a competitive road construction branch in a liberalized market. Cooperation and knowledge-sharing is going well so far and suggests that there is still a large unexploited area here.
Turkey is a country that is in development on multiple fronts. It is a candidate for European Union membership; it is experiencing dynamic economic growth. A country in motion, looking ahead. I know that many Dutch companies harbour the desire to cooperate. Shared opportunities are ripe for the picking, so let’s continue to seek them out.
Minister Yildirim, ladies and gentlemen,
I have visited your country frequently as a reporter for the European Union. I am pleased that in my capacity as Minister of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, I can take a positive, constructive attitude regarding your country. I hope your remaining days in the Netherlands are pleasant ones. Tomorrow you will be travelling to Zeeland, visiting former minister Peijs. Enjoy this beautiful part of the Netherlands. I would be happy to visit your country again. In the first place, to see beautiful Turkey again, and second, to see you all there once again. Because our relationship matters to me.
Thank you