Turgut ÖzalPrime Minister, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen. The Prime Minister has very kindly intimated to me that I should start by saying a few words. May I say therefore that I am delighted to be here in Turkey? I understand that I was the first British Prime Minister to pay an official visit to Turkey and I am very pleased that the honour has fallen to me.
We of course remember with very great pleasure, Mr Özal, your very successful visit to Britain in February 1986. We have of course met since then: we met at a conference in Berlin and more recently at a very important NATO conference in Brussels.
I think we can both say that we find our exchanges very refreshing, we both know what we think and we are able to say what we think in a spirit of friendship and of mutual respect. There is no secret about our admiration in Britain for your achievements, Prime Minister, in Turkey and also for your very important international role.
I wanted to see for myself the dramatic changes that are taking place in Turkey under your leadership and the very full programme which you have arranged—which I am looking forward to— [end p1] will give me an opportunity to see as much as I possibly can in this all too short visit.
Now for us in Britain, Turkey is a close and staunch ally in NATO. It is our partner in the Council of Europe with many other international institutions and our two economies are in fact the fastest growing in Europe and I like to think that Britain has been pre-eminent among European countries in giving Turkey encouragement and support. This augers very well for our relations and I hope very much that my visit will give a further powerful impetus in every field: defence, politics, trade.
And even though geographically our countries stand at opposite ends of our continent, I want to see Britain and Turkey reach out across Europe to establish a new partnership for the future; a partnership based on commitment to the principles of democracy, to a society in which enterprise and initiative flourish and to a strong and sure defence. That is a bold ambition but I believe and hope that my visit can take a step towards it.
Thank you very much for the welcome you have given me Prime Minister, Mr Özal.