Turkey, DR Congo bolster bonds with ‘win-win’ agreements
During President Erdoğan’s visit as part of his three-nation Africa tour, Turkey and the Democratic Republic of Congo agreed to improve several cooperation areas, from security to economy. The mutual will to form stronger bonds has been reaffirmed, the pr
TURKEY will continue to enhance its relations with African countries on the basis of sincerity, brotherhood and solidarity, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Sunday on his “historic” visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which was hailed by the African country’s leader for the broad range of “win-win” deals signed.
Erdoğan was welcomed in an official ceremony in the capital Kinshasa, on the first leg of his four-day Africa tour on Sunday. He was speaking at a joint news conference with his Congolese counterpart Felix Tshisekedi.
The two leaders signed seven agreements on security, the economy and industry. Erdoğan underlined that the communique, action plan and joint implementation report adopted during the 3rd Turkey-Africa Summit in December provided a “road map in our relations with Africa for 20222026.”
“We will continue to enhance our relations with African countries on the basis of sincerity, brotherhood and solidarity within this framework,” he added. “During our talks today, we have reviewed in detail our bilateral relations and cooperation opportunities. We have mutually reaffirmed our will to improve our bilateral cooperation.”
Pointing out the strengthening economic and trade relations between Turkey and the DRC, Erdoğan said: “We have nearly doubled our bilateral trade volume, which was $36.5 million in 2018 before the pandemic. We are advancing towards our trade goal of $250 million.” Erdoğan also underlined that Turkey encourages “Turkish businesspeople to boost their investments” in the DRC.