ANKARA, October 25. /TASS/. Relations between Russia and Turkey have reached a new level over the past 15 years, Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said on Friday at the 21st World Congress of Russian Press in Ankara.

"Russian-Turkish relations have been developing very intensively over the past 15 years. Bilateral ties and cooperation between Turkey and Russia have become very sincere and close in recent years," the politician noted.

Oktay also said that Ankara was paying particular attention to spreading news on Turkey in Russian. "We lay special emphasis on that, because Russian and Arabic are used in international organizations in addition to English," he stressed. "Given our country’s geopolitical location, as well as the diplomatic vision of the situation, any bridge in the media space with Russia will be of exceptional importance for Turkey."

The 21st World Congress of Russian Press, which opened in Ankara on Friday, will end in Alanya on October 27. The event was organized by the World Association of Russian Press (WARP) with the assistance of Russia’s TASS news agency. Publishers and editors-in-chief representing about 400 Russian-language foreign media outlets from more than 50 countries are taking part in the congress.

WARP President Vitaly Ignatenko and TASS First Deputy Director General Mikhail Gusman have arrived at the forum.