Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer flew into Tehran on Monday for a two-day visit that comes amidst improved relations between secular Turkey and the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Sezer, heading a 120-strong business delegation, is due to hold talks with Iranian counterpart Mohammad Khatami on bilateral as well as regional and international issues, Sezer's office said in a statement last week.
In his talks with Khatami, Sezer will explore economic opportunities that would compensate for an imbalance of around 500 million dollars in favor of Iran in bilateral trade, according to a Turkish official, AFP reported.
On Tuesday, Sezer will make a groundbreaking visit to Tabriz, capital of Iran's Azerbaijan province whose mainly Azeri population is of Turkic origin and speaks a related language.
Sezer is the third Turkish head of state to visit Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Before leaving Ankara, Sezer told reporters he hoped the visit would strengthen ties with Tehran, a critic of Ankara's military links with Israel, and that he would discuss international developments since the September 11 attacks. (Albawaba.com)
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