ANKARA

The president of Turkey made phone calls with the leaders of several countries on Friday to wish them a Happy New Year, said the country's Communications Directorate.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke on the phone with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, President of Kazakhstan Kassym Jomart Tokayev, President of Turkmenistan Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, and President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Ersin Tatar, the directorate said in a statement.

It said that during the conversations, the leaders emphasized their will to develop bilateral relations and strengthen cooperation on regional issues in the new year.