Ankara: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Thursday with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who is currently visiting Ankara. During a joint press conference held after an official meeting, the Turkish President expressed optimism about the possibility of significant progress in his country's accession to the European Union (EU), provided the EU responds positively to Turkiye's aspirations in this regard.

According to Qatar News Agency, Erdogan emphasized that Germany is Turkiye's largest European partner, highlighting his country's goal of increasing bilateral trade from $50 billion to $60 billion in the short term. He noted that he and Merz discussed ways to enhance defense cooperation to boost joint investment.

The German Chancellor expressed his country's desire to see Turkiye join the European Union (EU), indicating that he discussed with the Turkish President the possibility of establishing a strategic dialogue at the European level on this matter. Merz stated that his country will work to strengthen cooperation with Turkiye in the field of security policies and develop the strategic partnership.