United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan led the first high-level strategic cooperation council between the two countries in Ankara on Wednesday.
Sheikh Mohammed visited Ankara upon the Turkish president’s invitation to hold the council, which was created in 2023 to deepen cooperation between Türkiye and the UAE while also discussing regional and international developments. The two leaders were expected to sign a range of agreements following the meeting.
The two leaders have recently been in close contact, especially over the Iran-Israel tensions and the ongoing Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza.
Moreover, in a phone call this week, Sheikh Mohammed expressed that Ankara's "terror-free Türkiye" goal will significantly contribute to regional security, and also extended his wishes for a successful completion of the process.
For his part, Erdoğan stressed that the strategic partnership between Türkiye and the UAE has yielded positive results in all fields, noting the great potential between the two countries, particularly in the defense industry and emerging technologies.
The Turkish president also added that Ankara is closely monitoring the peace negotiations between Azerbaijan and Armenia launched in Abu Dhabi and will continue supporting endeavors to establish lasting calm in the Caucasus.
Türkiye and the UAE have repaired ties over the last three years in a rapprochement that also saw Ankara mending relations with Saudi Arabia.
Since then, the sides have ramped up contacts as they sought to seize opportunities to expand their partnerships and signed deals worth billions in energy, defense and other sectors.
