Türkiye, Zimbabwe agree to enhance bilateral ties

By Merve Aydogan

ANKARA (AA) - Türkiye and Zimbabwe have agreed to further enhance cooperation and bilateral relations in all areas, the Turkish foreign minister said on Wednesday.

In a joint press conference with his Zimbabwean counterpart Frederick Shava, Mevlut Cavusoglu, who is the first Turkish foreign minister to visit the southern African country, said: "We reviewed all aspects of our relations today, how to enhance our economic relations."

He said that the current bilateral trade of $35 million is not enough, adding that it needs to be increased as one of the priority areas of bilateral ties.

"We need to establish the Joint Economic Commission … and we need to conclude and sign agreements, MoUs that we have been negotiating to strengthen the legal basis of our relations," Cavusoglu added.

The Turkish minister also assured the willingness of Turkish companies to invest in Zimbabwe as he noted that two foreign ministers agreed "to work closely to further our relations in many areas," including agriculture, tourism, education and health.

Cavusoglu said that the private sectors in the two countries need to be encouraged for further cooperation both in Türkiye and here in Zimbabwe.

For his part, Zimbabwe’s Shava described Cavusoglu's visit as an "era for economic diplomacy."

"We are hoping to deepen cooperation between the Republic of Turkey and Zimbabwe," he said.