Turkish defense minister meets Italian counterpart

ANKARA (A.A) - Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz on Tuesday met with his Italian counterpart Giampaolo Di Paola in the Turkish capital, Ankara.     "Our relations are perfect in NATO and in the Mediterranean basin. We have no political issues between our two countries," Yilmaz told reporters before the meeting. Yilmaz said Di Paola visited Turkey for the first time since he assumed office in Italy's technocratic cabinet, adding that Turkey and Italy were eager to boost cooperation in defense.  Di Paola, on his part, said that Italy was ready to share the country's defense technologies with Turkey, and that the cooperation in defense industry between the two countries had reached to a remarkable level. "Our visit is of utmost importance. Italy is well aware that Turkey as an emerging regional power is not only significant in its own region but also in the Mediterranean, Central Asia, the Middle East and in the world," Di Paola said.