Çavuşoğlu discusses Turkey-Kyrgyzstan ties with Kulubaev
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu speaks after a bilateral meeting with his Panamanian counterpart at the Simon Bolivar foreign ministry headquarters in Panama City, Thursday, April 28, 2022. (AP File Photo)


Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu discussed bilateral relations and an upcoming meeting in a phone call with his Kyrgyz counterpart Jeenbek Kulubaev, the Foreign Ministry said Sunday.

In the phone call, the two foreign ministers hailed the positive dynamics in terms of enhancing bilateral relations.

They also agreed to hold the next meeting of the Joint Strategic Planning Group at the foreign ministry level soon.

Meanwhile, they discussed holding the strategic cooperation council’s meeting with the participation of the presidents of both countries in Kyrgyzstan.

Minister Kulubaev also hailed Turkey’s mediating role in efforts to de-escalate tensions in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Diplomatic relations between the two countries were established on Jan. 29, 1992. The embassies were reciprocally opened in Bishkek and Ankara in the same year.

The Agreement on Eternal Friendship and Cooperation was signed by Turkey's eighth President Turgut Özal and Kyrgyzstan's first President Askar Akayev in 1997.

The two countries also signed a joint statement on the establishment of a high-level strategic cooperation council in 2012.

Turkey provides the most development and social aid to Kyrgyzstan, especially through the state-run Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA).

According to data from the Kyrgyzstan National Statistical Committee, Turkey ranks fourth among countries investing in Kyrgyzstan following Russia, China and Kazakhstan.

Nearly 300 Turkish companies currently operating in the country have a total trade volume of more than $500 million.

Çavuşoğlu also spoke with his Lithuanian counterpart Gabrielius Landsbergis, discussing the latest developments in Ukraine, the ministry added.