Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday urged Germany to extend support for Turkey's European Union membership bid, adding that his country considered Germany as "a natural ally".

"We want to see Germany as the country which makes the biggest contribution and extends the biggest support for Turkey's EU membership," Erdogan told a meeting of the Turkish-German Business Forum in Istanbul.

The Turkish premier also said his country was eager to form a strategic partnership with Germany and set up a council for high level strategic cooperation.

"Turkey's relations with Germany are so special that they cannot compare to relations with any other country. And I think that Germany's stance over Turkey should have a special place," Erdogan said.

Erdogan said Turkey's membership in the EU would not place an extra burden on the Union's shoulders. "On the contrary, Turkey will share the Union's load."

Erdogan said Turkey and Germany had a deep relationship, adding that the friendship and cooperation between the two countries had their roots in history.

Erdogan said over three million Turks lived in Germany, adding that they had made successful careers as politicians, artists and businesspeople.

"Children and grandchildren of the Turkish citizens who first set foot on Germany fifty years ago are now German citizens who can speak German as good as native Germans. And their integration, without assimilation, into the German society is a must," Erdogan said.


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