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SV EXTERIOR: European Economic Community Headquarters Brussels.
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SV PAN: Mr Bulent Ecevit, Turkish Prime Minister, gets out of car and goes into building with officials.
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CU: sign "The President"
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SV PAN: Mr Ecevit speaking to Mr Roy Jenkins, President of the EEC Commission. (4 shots)
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At a dinner in his honour given by the Brussels International Press Association, Mr Ecevit said Greece's application to join the EEC would present no problem provided Greek-Turkish affairs were kept out of it. In Washington, Mr Ecevit is to chair a NATO summit. During his visit to Brussels, he had talks with General Alexander Haig, the NATO supreme commander during which he again expressed Turkey's anxiety about the continuing United States embargo on arms supplies to his country. After the meeting, General Haig said it was a matter of "the greatest urgency and importance" to NATOs South Eastern flank that this problem be settled.




Initials RH/1840



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Background: The Prime Minister of Turkey, Mr Bulent Ecevit, visiting Belgium for talks on Turkey's NATO involvement and with EEC officials, has called for deeper co-operation between his country and the European Common Market. Mr Ecevit was speaking to newsmen after a lunchtime meeting on Thursday (25 May) with the President of the European Economic Community's Executive Commission, Mr Roy Jenkins.

SYNOPSIS: Mr Ecevit was making a brief visit to Brussels before flying to the United States at the weekend to chair NATO summit meeting. Mr Ecevit hopes, in Washington, to meet the Greek Prime Minister Mr Constantine Karamanlis to discuss the disputes between them.

The question of Turkish-Greek relations formed the background to Mr Ecevit's talks with Mr Jenkins. Turkey is concerned about the effect on its economy and its future links with the EEC in the light of the Greek application for membership. After their meeting, Mr Ecevit said he had explained Turkey's present acute economic state and that it was wrong to try and dissociate short term problems from longer term ones.

In a lunchtime speech, Mr Jenkins said the Community could apply more flexibly the 1963 trade agreement with Turkey. He suggested a start be made on selecting projects which could be financed by some 450 million dollars earmarked for Turkey by the Common Market.