An intense diplomacy traffic in Ankara

ANKARA (AA) – Ankara will have an intense agenda this week.

Ankara will on Monday host Germany’s opposition Christian Democrats Union leader Angela Merkel, who opposes Turkey’s European Union membership.

Merkel will meet with Parliament speaker Bulent Arinc, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul.

Besides Merkel, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer will visit Turkey for the first time. Scheffer will arrive in Ankara on Wednesday.

According to the information obtained by diplomatic sources, de Hoop Scheffer will handle the NATO restructuring and the preparations regarding the NATO summit to be held on June 28-29 in Istanbul.

In his one-day visit, de Hoop Scheffer may also discuss NATO’s operations in Afghanistan and Balkans.

On Tuesday, Georgian Foreign Minister Tedo Japaridze upon Gul’s invitation. Besides the mutual ties between the two countries, the regional and international developments will also be discussed.