Erdoğan to Embark on a Historic Mideast Tour

In Dubai, Erdoğan will attend the “World Governments Summit 2024” at which Turkey is among the guests of honor on Feb. 13. As part of the summit, Erdoğan will deliver a speech with the theme “Sustainability and New Global Transformations,” during which he is expected to convey significant messages about the deterioration of the world order as seen in the case of the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.

The Turkish president is expected to hold bilateral meetings with the UAE leadership and leaders from other countries attending the summit. More than 25 state and government leaders, as well as many ministers, statesmen and experts in their fields, will attend the summit, where Turkey, Qatar and India are the guests of honor.

One of the main issues the leaders will discuss will be the ways to end the Israeli attacks on the civilians through a ceasefire which will be followed by efforts to resume peace negotiations between the two sides.

Erdoğan has recently vowed that Turkey’s struggle for the Palestinians will continue until a sovereign Palestine state is created on the basis of 1967 borders and with east Jerusalem as its capital.

 Boost in ties with the UAE

Erdoğan’s visit to Dubai will also pave the way for further boosting ties between Turkey and the UAE. The two countries signed more than 40 agreements in various fields in the past three years as they established a high-level strategic council in the year 2023.

Ankara sees the UAE as a very important actor in developing international cooperation to tackle the problems in the region as well as for the improvement of ties between Turkey and the Gulf Cooperation Council.

The annual trade volume between the two countries has reached to $20 billion following a record 112 percent increase in trade over the recent years.

 Historic visit to Egypt

Erdoğan’s last stop in his three-day tour will be Egypt, a regional heavyweight playing a crucial role in the ongoing crisis in the Israeli-Palestinian question.

President Erdoğan and Egyptian President Abdel Fettah al-Sisi will discuss both the recent improvement in bilateral ties and regional issues. What makes this meeting a historic one is the fact that it comes after a 10-year break in the Turkish-Egyptian relationship. Erdoğan’s visit to Cairo is seen as the climax of the normalization process between the two countries that started in early 2021.

Turkey and Egypt have appointed ambassadors in 2023 as a symbol of the new era. The two countries’ foreign ministers exchanged visits to increase the level of dialogue and accomplish the normalization process.

The latest presidential visit from Turkey to Egypt was performed by former President Abdullah Gül in early 2013.

Erdoğan-Sisi talks will allow further deepening of the bilateral ties, especially in the fields of economy, trade, investments and defense industry. The goal is to increase the trade volume to $15 billion.

In a recent interview, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan informed Egypt’s intentions to supply armed drones from Turkey. The issue will be discussed during the talks in Cairo.

Along with bilateral matters, Erdoğan and Sisi will review other regional developments, particularly the ongoing tragedy in Gaza. The close coordination between the two countries since the start of the Israeli aggression has allowed a more effective flow of humanitarian assistance to Gaza from Turkey, Ankara believes.

The situations in Libya, Somalia, Sudan and energy resources in the eastern Mediterranean will also be on their agenda.

Source: Hurriyet Daily News