Top Turkish diplomat praises ties with Venezuela in newspaper article

By Muhammed Emin Canik

BUENOS AIRES (AA) – Top Turkish diplomat praised the bilateral relations between Turkiye and Venezuela in an article published in the El Universal, a major Venezuelan newspaper, headquartered in the capital Caracas.

“The deep-rooted relations between Turkiye and Venezuela today exhibit an exemplary friendship within the framework of mutual respect and understanding, and are taking firm steps towards the future on the solid foundations of cooperation that we have established in all fields,” said Mevlut Cavusoglu, Turkish foreign minister in the article titled Relations between Turkiye and Venezuela: an example of friendship and collaboration.

Cavusoglu said that although the diplomatic relations between the two countries started on Dec. 29, 1950, the first contact between the Turkish people and Venezuela dates back to the Ottoman Empire era.

Migratory movements from the Ottoman Empire to Venezuela in the 19th century resulted in bridges of peace and brotherhood that were built, said Cavusoglu adding that the Turkish people who migrated were called “Los Turcos” by the locals.

The top Turkish diplomat said that Turkiye and its people will not forget the support of the Venezuelan government and people in the aftermath of the July 15, 2016 coup attempt in Turkiye.

“The Venezuelan government and its people supported the constitutional and legitimate government of the Republic of Turkiye against the vile coup attempt and terrorist acts against the democratic institutions of Turkiye and showed a great example of friendship,” said Cavusoglu.

“We will never forget the solidarity shown by Venezuela, which took a clear stance in favor of democracy and legitimacy,” he added.

He said that high-level visits after the attempted coup between the two countries “played an important role in accelerating, diversifying, and deepening our relations,” referring to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s visit to the Latin American country in 2018.

“The close friendship and understanding that developed between our President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and President Nicolas Maduro Moros, also guide us in the development of our bilateral relations,” he added.

-Economic relations

The economic and trade relations between the two countries have increased significantly with the agreements that were previously signed, that was based on the principles of mutual respect and win-win, said Cavusoglu.

“Despite the COVID-19 pandemic and the sanctions imposed on Venezuela, our bilateral trade volume increased to $ 852 million in 2021. We believe that the real potential between our countries is much more than this figure,” he said.

Also praising “the economic development of Venezuela despite all the difficulties,” Cavusoglu said: “Turkiye will continue to make constructive and creative contributions to the government-opposition dialogue process in the coming period, as it has done in the past.”

“Turkiye is against unilateral sanctions and coercive measures, any undemocratic power shifts, coup attempts, and foreign interventions,” said the Turkish foreign minister adding “we believe in the conscience of the Venezuelan people, we think that only Venezuelans should determine the future of Venezuela”.