UPDATES WITH MORE REMARKS BY TURKISH PRESIDENT
By Handan Kazanci
ISTANBUL (AA) – Turkiye and Saudi Arabia will start a “new era” to boost bilateral ties, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday.
“My visit (to Saudi Arabia) is the manifestation of our common will to start a new era of cooperation as two brotherly countries,” Erdogan told reporters at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport before his departure for a two-day visit to Jeddah, a Saudi port city.
“It is in our common interest to increase our cooperation with Saudi Arabia in fields such as health, energy, food security, agricultural technologies, defense industry, and finance,” he said.
Erdogan also said Turkiye strives to ensure the regional peace and resolve the problems via dialogue and diplomacy.
“I believe we will boost our ties in every field with our joint efforts,” he said, stressing “the potential especially in renewable and clean energy technologies.”
The Turkish leader said the regional and international developments will also be on the agenda during his visit. “We express on every occasion that we attach as much importance to the stability and security of our brothers in the Gulf region as our own.”
Erdogan also underlined the importance of “dialogue and cooperation” for the security and stability of the entire region as “threats are getting more and more complex.”
He also condemned the drone and missile attacks targeting Saudi Arabia.
During the visit, Erdogan is accompanied by Turkish First Lady Emine Erdogan and ministers of interior, national defense, justice, health, treasury and finance, and culture and tourism.
The Turkish presidency announced Erdogan’s visit on Wednesday, saying it comes upon the invitation of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia.
Relations between Ankara and Riyadh “will be reviewed in all aspects and the possibilities of developing cooperation will be discussed,” the presidency said.
“During the meetings, views will be exchanged on regional and international issues as well as bilateral relations,” it added.
Last month, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that major steps are ongoing to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia.
“We didn’t have a negative attitude towards Saudi Arabia in terms of normalizing relations, either commercially, economically, or politically,” Cavusoglu told Turkish news broadcaster A Haber in a televised interview.
Turkiye and Saudi Arabia had seen their ties deteriorating in recent years over foreign policy. Tensions increased following the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in his consulate in Istanbul.