Syria, Turkey proceed for normal relations

Spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry Semeit Atanjali said on Tuesday that the visit to be held by Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Adnan Omran to Turkey constitutes "a new step towards normalization of relations" between the two countries.

The Syrian official will arrive in Ankara this morning to begin a 48-hour official visit. Meeting with reporters the Turkish spokesman said, "A progress is recorded to settle disputes between the two countries. Exchanged visits will be made between Ankara and Damascus."

Omran's visit comes following the visit of the director of the Middle East department at the Turkish Foreign Ministry by the end of March to Syria. The two countries are locked in disputes over several controversial issues.

Ankara accuses Damascus of supporting the separatist "Kurdish Labor Party" (PKK) and giving shelter to its leader Abdullah Auj, whereas Damascus continuously denies these accusations and blames Ankara for reducing the amounts of water flowing into Syria by building dams on the Euphrates river, which also irrigates Syria.