Qatar and Turkey turned another golden leaf in the annals of their strategic partnership yesterday by hosting the 7th Turkey-Qatar Strategic Committee in Doha which was co-chaired by Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Turkish President H E Recep Tayyip Erdogan. H H the Amir and H E the Turkish President who arrived in Doha on Monday on a two-day visit, held a round of talks which dealt with ever-strengthening partnership between the two countries and several international issues.
The two leaders witnessed the signing of 12 bilateral agreements, including in fields such as trade, investment, development, culture, youth, sports, diplomacy, health, religious affairs and media cooperation.
Qatar and Turkey are two staunch friends who stood together through thick and thin for the last several decades weathering regional and international storms. In the last two decades especially, relations between Qatar and Turkey have witnessed rapid development in various fields. The ability of the two Middle Eastern countries to maintain strong relations was derived from the convergence of views on many regional and international matters, which represent a rare distinguished experience.
Ever since the opening of the two countries’ embassies in Doha and Ankara in 1979, their relations have seen a steady growth and witnessed a major boost in the past few years. In 2008, the first Qatari-Turkish Business Forum was held in Doha and in the same year, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding to start comprehensive cooperation in various fields.
In 2013, Erdogan inaugurated the new headquarters of the Turkish Embassy in Doha and in 2014, the Turkish President selected Qatar as the first first country to visit after assuming presidency. In December 2014, H H the Amir and the Turkish President signed an agreement to set up the joint Strategic Committee.
Qatar was the first Arab country to condemn the failed coup attempt in Turkey in 2016, while in June, 2017, when Qatar was facing a regional rift Turkey stood fast with the country offering its strong support. Bilateral trade also has been witnessing significant growth which grew from $340m in 2010 to $2.4bn in 2020.
Both the countries have been cooperating in numerous regional and international issues, including the Afghan and Libyan issues. Qatar and Turkey played a pivotal role in providing humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and operating the Kabul international airport after the collapse of the previous government and in supporting the legitimate Libyan government.
