MOLDOVA PRESIDENT AND GAGAUZIA GOVERNOR DISCUSS TURKISH LEADER'S FORTHCOMING VISIT

In the course of his forthcoming official visit to the Republic of Moldova scheduled for October 17-18, President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan will inter alia make a voyage to the southern Moldovan autonomous region of Gagauzia.

On Tuesday morning, Moldovan President Igor Dodon and Gagauzia Bashkan Irina Vlah discussed the details of the would-be visit.

Dodon wrote on his Facebook page afterwards that on the second day of the visit, the high Turkey guest and his wife will visit the Gagauzia autonomy, where in Comrat town [Gagauzia's administrative center] and other localities they will attend the openings of 6 important social objects built thanks to Turkish partners namely a kindergarten, a hospital, an arts and creativity center for schoolchildren, a culture center, an old people's home, and a municipal recreation park.

Dodon reminded that the Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency (TIKA) had responded kindly to the Moldovan President's request and is now accomplishing the repair of the Presidential Office building that was seriously damaged during the attempted coup d'etat of April 7, 2009.

Speaking in the "Friday with Anatol Golea" live program on the RTR-Moldova channel, Igor Dodon said that Turkey had spent over 10 million euros on the repair.

"Initially, a budget of 7.5 million euros was projected. But later, it was decided to make not only an internal but also an external repair of the building and to equip it fully with new furniture - every room from the ground floor to the 10th floor", wrote Igor Dodon.

Answering Anatol Golea's questions, the President categorically refuted whatever connection between the edifice repair and the recent expulsion from Moldova of 7 citizens of Turkey - teachers of the Turkish language who worked in the Orizont network lyceums in this republic.

"Never, not in a single of my meetings with Mr. Erdogan or other Turkey officials have we raised the question of my promoting the expulsion of the teachers. I swear: it was as surprising news for me as I believe it was for you. Think yourself, why on earth should I organize such a provocation on the eve of President Erdogan's visit to Chisinau? There was no point in that, absolutely. It was a provocation organized against me and may be against somebody else. We will clear it out one day", the President said, remarking that he had immediately sent an inquiry to the Information and Security Service (ISS), but received only a formal, meaningless reply from them.

Igor Dodon recognized that in the course of his meetings with Turkish officials, some of them were trying to raise the question of the said Moldo-Turkish lyceum network Orizont and of closing down all the 5 Orizont lyceums functioning in Moldova for many years. "But I have no questions or claims to the Orizont lyceums reputed to be among the best educational institutions in Moldova. I replied to those officials that President in Moldova doesn't tackle such issues. The more so the expulsion issue - it has never been discussed here. We have no right to place the lives of the teachers and their families in dependence with an edifice repair, even if this is the Presidential Office. I don't play such games", stated Igor Dodon.