Romanian FM: Turkey's EU membership a win-win situation

Turkish and Romanian foreign ministers signed a cooperation protocol in the Turkish capital, Ankara.   Speaking at a joint press conference with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu, Romanian Foreign Minister Titus Corlatean said the penning of "the Cooperation Program in the fields of Education, Culture and Press, Youth and Sports" protocol would strengthen relations between the two countries. "The signing of the action plan for the strategic partnership really excites us. The steps we have taken to materialize cooperation in the areas of concrete cooperation projects, economy, energy, transport, culture and education really excites us. I believe the implementation of our strategic partnership will further develop our relations. Turkey and Romania think alike both in EU's expansion policy and the developments in the Middle East," Corlatean said. Reminding that the two nations were celebrating the 135th anniversary of their diplomatic relations, Corlatean said Romania was Turkey's fifth biggest trade partner and they expected the trade volume between Turkey and Romania to reach $10 billion. Stating that Romania supported Turkey's EU process, Corlatean said that Ankara's membership would both strengthen Turkey and the Union. "Romania supports the opening of chapters [policy areas] in Turkey's EU accession process. Because, we believe this would create a win-win situation for both Turkey and the EU member states," the minister said. Corlatean said that they were very concerned over the Syria crisis, adding that Romania also wanted to provide financial support for the Syrians and it appreciated Turkey's efforts.