Russia and Turkey are becoming strategic partners, President Dmitry Medvedev said shortly before his visit to Ankara, due May 11-12.

"June 3 will see 90 years since the day diplomatic relations between our countries were established, and my visit will take place shortly before that remarkable date," Medvedev said in an article for Turkish newspaper Zaman.

"First of all, we can say with conviction that Russian-Turkish ties are reaching the level of full-scale strategic partnership," the Russian leader said, adding that a declaration signed by the two presidents in Moscow in February 2009 testified to that.

He also said Russia sees Turkey as a "good and reliable neighbor with whom we are happy to jointly build plans to further strengthen cooperation for the good of our countries' peoples."

Medvedev said the two countries should aim at increasing bilateral trade three- to fivefold during the next five years, not only at the expense of raw materials but also through cooperation in hi-tech fields and mutual investment.

He said the key direction of cooperation is the fuel and energy sector.

"There are a number of priority landmark joint projects in the field: the construction of the South Stream and Blue Stream-2 gas pipelines, the Samsun-Ceyhan oil pipeline, the construction of a nuclear power plant by Russia on the territory of the Turkish Republic," Medvedev said.

MOSCOW, May 10 (RIA Novosti)