Turkey bombs ahead of Blair visit

HSBC bank rocked by bomb blast in Turkey

Four small bombs exploded in Turkey ahead of UK Prime Minister Tony Blair arriving in the country on Monday.

They went off outside branches of British bank HSBC in the Turkish cities of Ankara and Istanbul overnight.

The blasts are said to have caused only minor damage and there are no reports of casualties.

Mr Blair was in Turkey for talks with the country's prime minister and president which are likely to include its application for EU membership.

One bomb smashed windows of a HSBC branch in the capital Ankara when it exploded at about 2230 local time (2000BST).

There were similar blasts outside two HSBC branches in Istanbul at about 2200 local time (2000BST).

More than 60 people died in bomb attacks in Istanbul in November, two of which were against British targets.

Annual event?

Mr Blair is to hold talks with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The summit is expected to become an annual event.

As well as Turkey's bid to join the European Union, the agenda is likely to include the continuing conflict in Iraq, the Middle East, Cyprus and terrorism.

But the meetings will be dominated by the issue of whether the EU will agree, later this year, to set a start date for negotiations which will eventually lead to Turkey becoming a full member of the EU.

Britain supports Turkey's bid to join the EU, looking on the country as an important strategic partner.