Erdoğan visits UAE
13 agreements signed during the 2-day trip
TURKISH President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan arrived in the United Arab Emirates on Monday on the first such visit since 2013, as the two countries mend ties strained by years of animosity in a pivot toward economic partnership.
Turkish news agency Anadolu reported later that the two countries had signed 13 agreements including on defence, trade, climate change, industry, and the economy.
Mr Erdoğan was greeted by the Gulf state’s de facto ruler Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed alNahyan, who visited Ankara last November when investment accords worth billions of dollars were signed.
“During this visit, we aim to develop the momentum we have captured with the United Arab Emirates and to take
the necessary steps for ties to go back to the level they deserve,” Mr Erdoğan told reporters at İstanbul’s Atatürk Airport before he departed.
“The dialogue and cooperation of Turkey and the United Arab Emirates carries great importance for the peace and stability of our entire region,” he added.
The UAE and Turkey have
competed for regional influence since Arab uprisings erupted a decade ago, a rivalry which saw them backing different sides in Libya’s civil war and extended to disputes from the eastern Mediterranean to the Gulf.
The warming diplomatic relations come as Turkey is facing economic turmoil and as the UAE pursues a more conciliatory foreign policy driven
by economic priorities.
Last month the two countries agreed on a nearly $5 billion swap deal in local currencies.
Mr Erdoğan said during his visit that Turkey and the UAE would seek to boost bilateral trade and seek opportunities in “the complementary structures of the two countries’ economies”.
SAUDI ARABIA
Turkey is continuing a “positive dialogue” with Saudi Arabia and wants to take concrete steps in the coming days to improve ties, Mr Erdoğan was cited as saying on Wednesday.
Ties between Ankara and Riyadh have been troubled since the 2018 killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi by a Saudi hit squad at the kingdom’s consulate in İstanbul. Following Turkish demands for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and other officials to be prosecuted, Riyadh imposed an unofficial boycott on goods from Turkey.
In 2020, Saudi Arabia jailed eight people for between seven and 20 years for Khashoggi’s murder.
At the time Ankara said the verdict fell short of expectations, but has since softened its tone as part of a broader attempt to repair ties with the Gulf, even going as far as saying it has no problems with Riyadh.