Turkey and Pakistan are key members of the Islamic World and share views on problems and issues confronting the Muslim Ummah. Both countries have a deep-rooted relationship and share unanimity of views on almost all issues of regional and international importance. For the past 75 years, the two countries have enjoyed a partnership, which can easily be described as an all-weather partnership, that has been mutually beneficial and centred around economic development, diplomatic backing and collaboration over security and defence issues.
Apparently in a determined attempt to renew bilateral relations and encourage more cooperation, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently paid a three-day official visit to Turkey which turned out to be quite friendly, productive and result-oriented.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visited Turkey in order to have the highest-level discussions there on enhancing and boosting cooperation and collaboration in various sectors like investment, trade, health, education, culture. It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan and Turkey already enjoy a strong collaborative partnership when it comes to defence. Both brotherly countries combined their resources to create the largest warship MILGEM-class PNS Badar which was launched in Karachi in May 2022. This was indeed a shining example of the excellent cooperation between the two countries in the defence sector.
In order to help and assist each other economically, both countries have also signed a Strategic Economic Framework that inspired innovation in the fields of technology, tourism, education and health sectors. Turkish companies’ investment in Pakistan has also increased to $ I billion for the first time since 2011.
Needless to mention, contacts between the top leadership of the two countries greatly help in promoting bilateral relations and cooperation in various fields and sectors for the mutual benefit of their people.
The visit of the PM had taken place when the two countries were celebrating the 75th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Pakistan. The Seventh High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council will be meeting in Islamabad in September 2022 and hopefully will go a long way in further promoting and strengthening the existing warm, sincere and brotherly relations between the two countries.
On the very first day of the visit, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, while interacting with Turkish businessmen and investors, emphatically pointed that somehow closeness in Pakistan and Turkey’s relationship was not fully reflected in the trade ties and expressed the desire that the volume of trade between the two countries should go up to $5 billion annually. He quite rightly pointed out that Turkey and Pakistan have a long historical relationship firmly anchored in common faith, shared history and a glorious tradition, and extend mutual support to each other on issues of core interest, s6 there was certainly and surely no doubt that both the countries have a great potential for increased and enhanced trade and economic relations mutually beneficial for both sides.
The Pakistani Prime Minister had a one-on-one long meeting with host President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and then the two leaders addressed a joint press conference. Among other things, Turkish and Pakistani leaders had also exchanged views regarding Kashmir, Palestine, Cyprus and Afghanistan.
President Erdogan said that they had discussed a vast number of regional and international issues in detail, reaffirmed to further enhance the scope of bilateral ties, resolved that the close friendship and cooperation between the two countries would be further strengthened and both were also moving on cooperation in defence projects, citing joint construction of ships.
He went on to say that mutual trade between the two countries had already soared to over $1 billion and they have resolved to it it further onward to $5 billion annually, assured to encourage the Turkish companies to increase their investment in Pakistan, tourism, education, logistic and civil aviation were among other sectors in which they were working to enhance cooperation.
Turkey has all along been supporting the Kashmiris’ right to self-determination and reiterating the quite appreciable stance, President Erdogan called for resolving lingering and burning Kashmir issue in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions amicably.
On his turn, PM Shehbaz Sharif lauded the unflinching support of Turkey over the Kashmir issue and said that the Kashmiris had been struggling for their legitimate right of self-determination and been subjected by Indian occupying security forces to worst brutalities and atrocities for more than seven decades of their freedom struggle and also nd5a was making attempts to effect demographic changes in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
He went on to reaffirm Pakistan’s principled stand and said that Pakistan would not abandon its quest for peace, which was only possible in South Asia if the long outstanding issue of Kashmir was resolved under the UN Security Council resolutions and in accordance with the aspirations of the Kashmiri people. He also reaffirmed Pakistan’s support to Turkey over Northern Cyprus saying that Pakistan stands with Turkey in its fight against terrorism and terrorist groups as enemies of Turkey are enemies of Pakistan. Both Turkey and Pakistan have worked for decades for their shared goals of a peaceful and stable Afghanistan and were hosting the largest number of Afghan refugees in the world.
It is worth mentioning here that warm bonds between Turkey and Pakistan had been close to their hearts going beyond conventional ties and diplomatic niceties, bonds of friendship were deeply rooted in history and intertwined in the very fabric of their respective societies, such a relationship was deep in their hearts as they were tied with each other in the unbreakable, intertwined and interlinked bonds which also connected them at all levels, whether the governments, the institutions, the armed forces or the people.
The visit of the PM had taken place when the two countries were celebrating the 75th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between Turkey and Pakistan. The Seventh High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council will be meeting in Islamabad in September 2022 and hopefully will go a long way in further promoting and strengthening the existing warm, sincere and brotherly relations between the two countries.
All in all, the visit was quite productive as a number of agreements, memorandum of understandings and protocols were signed for further expanding cooperation and assistance in various sectors.
