Turkey’s European Union Affairs Minister Egemen Bağış walked out of a conference in Yalta before Israeli President Shimon Peres took the stage to address the participants

Turkey's European Union Affairs Minister Egemen Bağış walked out of a conference in Yalta, Ukraine on Friday night before Israeli President Shimon Peres took the stage to address the participants, reported Today's Zaman on Saturday.

Peres was a keynote speaker at the eighth Yalta European Strategy forum on “Ukraine and the World: Common Challenges, Common Future,” held in the Livadia Palace from September 15 to 18.

The forum, known by its acronym of YES, focused on economic and political challenges currently facing the world, especially Ukraine’s relationship with the European Union and Russia’s role in global diplomacy. Ukrainian participants also promoted investment opportunities in Ukraine.

Peres attended the conference at the personal invitation of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.

The incident is similar to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's storming out of the World Economic Forum in Davos two years ago during a debate with Peres.