Turkey's President Erdogan meets Merkel in Berlin

By Ayhan Simsek

BERLIN (AA) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Saturday at a working breakfast to discuss bilateral and international issues.

Erdogan was accompanied by Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, and Technology and Industry Minister Mustafa Varank.

It was Erdogan and Merkel's second meeting during the president’s three-day high-profile state visit to Germany.

On Friday, Erdogan and Merkel headed a larger meeting between Turkish and German ministers and senior officials.

At a joint press conference afterwards, Merkel vowed to enhance cooperation between Germany and Turkey in the economy and energy and security despite political differences on a number of issues.

Merkel said their talks on Saturday would focus on bilateral relations and regional issues, including the situation in Syria.

Following his official meetings in Berlin on Saturday, Erdogan is scheduled to proceed to the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, which has a large Turkish immigrant population.

In Cologne, Erdogan is expected to attend the inauguration ceremony of Cologne Central Mosque, run by Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs.