Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said Monday that authorities in his country had contained an outbreak of bird flu but were on high alert for any new cases, AP reported. «It is over now in Turkey,» Gul said about the deadly strain of the virus identified recently in the country. Authorities are on alert across Turkey and have warned that migratory birds could still spread the flu elsewhere. Gul said the country is keeping the European Union closely informed about the situation. «The European Union ... appreciates our efforts and our activities,» to fight bird flu, Gul said after arriving on a two-day official visit to Finland. Veterinarians from Turkey's Agriculture Ministry said that nearly 10,000 birds had been culled in the village of Kiziksa following a mandatory order to deliver them for destruction and that the outbreak of bird flu had been contained. Gul met with his Finnish counterpart, Erkki Tuomioja, and President Tarja Halonen and was scheduled to meet with Finnish lawmakers during a visit to Parliament later Monday. Tuomioja, whose country will hold the rotating EU presidency in the second half of 2006, said his talks with Gul focused on Turkey's membership negotiations with the European Union. He praised the «tremendous progress» that Turkey has achieved in the past years to fulfill the criteria to join the 25-member bloc. Gul said Turkey is fully committed to continue economic reforms needed to enter the EU but pledged also to foster democracy in the country.
