Video Bush with Erdogan, at Ataturk tomb, ceremony, departs

1. Pan from Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to US President George W Bush and US Secretary of State Colin Powell in reception room

2. SOUNDBITE: (English) George W. Bush, US President:

"I believe you ought to be given a date by the EU for your eventual acceptance into the EU. I look forward to discussing matters regarding the neighbourhood - Iraq and elsewhere. I appreciate so very much the example your country has set on how to be a Muslim country and at the same time a country which embraces democracy and rule of law and freedom."

3. Bush climbs stairs to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk's Mausoleum behind military guards bearing a large wreath


4. Guards carry wreath into Ataturk's tomb ahead of Bush and his wife, Laura

6. Close up of Bush and Laura walking behind guards

7. Various of Bush and Laura laying wreath

8. Bush getting out of car to greet Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer

9. Bush and Sezer stand during playing of US national anthem

10. Wide of troops standing beside red carpet

11. Various of Bush and Sezer walking past Turkish troops

12. Bush speaks into microphone, and troops respond

13. Various of Bush and his wife Laura greeting Turkish dignitaries

14. Bush, Sezer and their wives stand for photos and then walk into Presidential Palace


15. Bush arriving at airport in limousine

16. Bush and wife walk up the stairs and wave to the crowd

17. Pilot's window

18. Wide shot of plane on the runway


STORYLINE:


U.S. President George W. Bush pledged on Sunday to fight for Turkey to become a member of the European Union before leaving for Istanbul and the 26-member NATO alliance summit that begins on Monday.


He held out Turkey as a model for the Middle East as he met Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara , and praised the country as a Muslim nation which embraces democracy and the rule of law.


After Bush's third meeting of the year with Erdogan, he sat down with Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer.


In between those sessions, he visited the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, a national shrine honouring the father

of the modern Turkish Republic.


On a blazingly hot, sunny day, Bush and his wife, Laura, walked arm-in-arm behind a three-person military honour guard into the memorial and watched as a wreath of red and white flowers was placed at his tomb.


The Bushes paused and the president reached forward and rearranged a flower; They bowed their heads in respect before leaving.


Bush, on his first-ever trip to Turkey, ignored reporters' questions about the abduction in Iraq of three Turkish workers by supporters of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian-born terrorist believed to have ties to al-Qaida. The kidnappers reportedly threatened to behead the Turks within 72 hours.


Bush's visit to Turkey is officially meant to examine ways to strengthen NATO, but he is also using it to bolster the U.S. relationship with Turkey, a key ally in the region and in the campaign against terrorism.


Turks overwhelmingly opposed the war in Iraq and Bush is widely unpopular there.


There was no mention during Bush's visit of the Turkish parliament's rejection last year of a U.S. request to let U.S. troops use Turkish bases as a staging point to invade Iraq from the north.


Instead, Bush emphasised his support for Turkey's bid for admission to the European Union.


Bush is hoping his talks with Turkish leaders will smooth the U.S. partnership with the only Muslim nation in the Western alliance.


At the NATO summit, Bush hopes the alliance will formally agree to train Iraqi security forces.


NATO nations tentatively agreed Saturday to respond to interim Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's urgent request for military training and equipment.

























You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/dbdca31a18c57ee3ef02e1f74075f24a

Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork