Mr. Chairman,
Mr. Secretary General,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is an honor for me to represent Turkey today at the 36th Regular Session of the General Assembly of the Organization of American States, which Turkey deems as one of the leading regional platforms in the world to promote democracy, good governance and human rights, to foster peace and security and to fight against poverty, corruption and terrorism.

Sharing the objectives of the OAS, Turkey is determined to develop closer relations with the OAS and the member countries.

Eight years ago, Turkish Government launched an initiative to develop its relations with the countries of the Western Hemisphere, in particular with the Central, Latin American and Caribbean countries, and put into effect an action plan to this end. I am happy to report that since then, we have finalized, to a great extent, the legal framework of our relations with the countries of the region, and managed to initiate political, economic and cultural cooperation with them. As such, 2006 is declared in Turkey as the Year of Latin America.

Turkey has obtained permanent observer status in 1998 and has concluded a Framework Cooperation Agreement with the OAS in 2004 to identify specific areas of cooperation and to launch joint projects accordingly. We have already initiated such cooperation with the Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism through the visit of Mr.Steven Monblatt, the Executive Secretary of CICTE, to Turkey in February 2005. A similar cooperation has been established between the Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey and the OAS Office of Science and Technology. We are looking forward to diversify joint projects with the OAS.

Mr. Chairman,

Since 2001, Turkey has been contributing to specific OAS projects in the fields of fight against illicit drugs and terrorism, sustainable development, environment, education of young entrepreneurs, science and technology. Taking this opportunity, I have the honor to announce that, this year, the Turkish Government has decided to make financial contribution to the Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism, the Art Museum of the Americas, the “Americas” Magazine and the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission. Although modest, our contribution should be considered as a reflection of the commitment of Turkey’s solidarity and cooperation with the peoples of the Americas.

Mr.Chairman,

In concluding my remarks, I would like to reiterate our sincere wish to further develop our cooperation with both the Organization and the member states. I also would like to thank the Government of the Dominican Republic for its generous hospitality.

Thank you.