Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said that Serbia and Turkey are the key countries in the region and denied allegations of running a neo-Ottoman policy in the Balkans.

Turkey and Serbia see each other as key partners regarding peace and stability in the Balkans, he noted, adding that the two countries are willing to establish a strategic partnership. This was confirmed through many high-ranking visits and contacts, which resulted in an honest and close cooperation on bilateral and regional issues, he stated in an interview reported by balkaninsight.com.

Turkey and Serbia share a vision of the future of the Balkans and have great potential for cooperation in various areas, Davutoglu remarked.

He denied the allegations by some Balkan politicians who say he is running a neo-Ottoman policy in the region. According to Davutoglu, such an agenda does not exist.

He drew heavy criticism in Sarajevo in 2009, when he said that the Ottoman history is the history of the Balkans and that the centuries of Ottoman rule in the region were a story of success, which should be repeated.