BERLIN (AA) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel stated Monday they "were loyal to the principle of pacta sunt servanda, but were waiting for the developments" on Turkey's EU membership.
Speaking in the ninth regular general assembly of Turkish German Industry and Trade board (TD-IHK), Merkel said they were following the Gezi Park incidents in Turkey for the ties between Turkey and Germany, adding, "Although we don't always have the same ideas, our dialogue continues all the time".
"The incidents should be seen as richness and not threat. There were similar debates in Germany but we always came out of the crisis stronger. I told, I was afraid of some displays. For the solution of these, there must be dialogue at the forefront to gain solution. We can't ignore these during the membership negotiations," Merkel said. "My following request is, we need to take a step in Ankara protocol. It's the most persistent obstacle. We are loyal to the principle of pacta sunt servanda, but we're waiting for the developments. We need to compact our relations, where economic relations are the trivet."
Merkel said, TD-IHK executed a significant task between Turkey and Germany and added trading volume reached 32 billion euros after 2009 economic crisis.
- Visa requirements between Turkey and Germany to be recovered again
Merkel stated she would recover the demands for visa requirements for Turks to enter Germany and said she would discuss it with Interior Ministry, taking also Turkish ambassador in Berlin Huseyin Avni Karslioglu's statements into consideration.
She added giving longer visa to businessmen would both be a gesture and a further step.
Merkel stressed their strong will of Turkish companies engagement to Germany and said she sees a bigger potential between two countries.
"Turkey's pretentious infrastructure works makes us happy. German companies place there with their experiences," she underlined.
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