AMIR H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani’s visit to Ankara comes on the heels of back-to-back meetings between Qatar and Turkey at the highest level in recent years. H H the Amir and Turkish President H E Recep Tayyip Erdogan chaired the sixth meeting of the Qatar-Turkey Supreme Strategic Committee in Ankara, yesterday. The relationship between Doha and Ankara is rooted in decades of close religious, cultural and trade ties. In recent years the two countries have increased bilateral cooperation in various fields including tourism, defence and knowledge sharing. Qatar-Turkey Supreme Strategic Committee has been convening annually since its first meeting in Doha in 2015. Ever since the two countries have signed 52 agreements to enhance cooperation in diverse fields. A number of agreements in the fields of economy, culture, trade, education, Islamic and family affairs, and water management were signed at the sixth round. The trade ties between the two countries have increased tremendously over the past years, and currently more than 500 Turkish companies are operating in Qatar. The total value of the projects undertaken by Turkish contracting companies since 2002 is $18.5bn. Similarly, Qatari investment and the footprint of Qatari companies in Turkey has also increased as currently 280 Qatari firms are engaged in various sectors in Turkey and the Qatari investments in Turkey have risen to $22bn. Qatar-Turkey bilateral trade volume has tripled over the past five years to more than $2bn in 2019. The number of Qatari tourists to Turkey has also increased tremendously from about 30,000 in 2014, to about 110,000 in 2019. There are also more than 11,000 Turkish citizens who live and work in Qatar in different fields. The two countries have also worked closely on many issues at the bilateral, regional and international levels for years, and Turkey has also been a strong supporter for Doha’s mediatory role for peaceful resolution of conflicts in the region and elsewhere. Turkish President, who recently visited Doha, has termed the bilateral cooperation with Qatar a win-win partnership. He said Turkey-Qatar Combined Joint Force Command was a symbol of brotherhood, friendship, solidarity, and sincerity between the two countries, adding that Turkey’s military presence in Qatar was contributing to the stability in the whole region. President Erdogan said Qatar had emerged stronger despite the unjust blockade imposed against it, hoping the crisis is resolved soon. Qatar’s cooperative ties with Turkey have served the cause of peace, justice, and respect for the international law in the region and beyond.
