President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Chinese President Xi Jinping came together on Sunday, ahead of a dinner set to be hosted by Xi to honor leaders attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit.
Earlier, Xi held bilateral talks with various leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
The SCO meeting is being held Sunday and Monday, marking the fifth annual summit hosted by China since the forum was established in 2001.
The summit convenes amid escalating geopolitical tensions, including Israel's war in the Gaza Strip, the Ukraine conflict and international tariff disputes. Xi, serving as the rotating chair, will preside over the summit.
The Turkish Presidency’s Communications Directorate said in a written statement posted on its social media account that the two leaders discussed a range of issues and assessed economic cooperation.
“President Erdoğan underlined that bilateral trade should be supported with investments to keep it balanced and sustainable, and noted that the two countries have great potential, particularly in digital technologies, energy, healthcare and tourism. He added that greater cooperation would be beneficial for Chinese companies to invest in Türkiye in these fields,” the statement said.
The directorate noted that Erdoğan also emphasized the importance of joint steps to harmonize the Middle Corridor and the Belt and Road Initiative.
“The two leaders agreed to maintain existing consultation and cooperation mechanisms, and President Erdoğan reiterated his support for the ‘One China’ policy,” the directorate said.
Erdoğan also stressed the strategic aspect of bilateral relations. The two leaders discussed the latest situation in Gaza, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, possible joint steps for Syria’s development, as well as regional and global issues.
For his part, Xi said China and Türkiye should strengthen the alignment of the Belt and Road Initiative with the Middle Corridor Initiative, praising Ankara's "spirit of self-reliance." He noted that both countries are emerging powers and important members of the Global South, sharing a spirit of "independence and self-reliance," Beijing's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"Maintaining the high-level development of China-Türkiye relations serves the fundamental interests of both countries and the common interests of the Global South," Xi was quoted as saying. He added that the two countries should seize the momentum of "an era of peace, development, cooperation, and win-win outcomes," achieve mutual success on their paths to national prosperity, elevate the China-Türkiye strategic cooperative relationship to new heights, and jointly promote the building of a more just and equitable global governance system.
Highlighting that next year marks the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, Xi said China and Türkiye should use the occasion to raise bilateral ties to a new level.
"They should consolidate political mutual trust, support each other on issues concerning core interests and major concerns, and strengthen counterterrorism and security cooperation," he said.
Xi also emphasized that the two sides should deepen practical cooperation by further aligning the Belt and Road Initiative with the Middle Corridor Initiative, advancing the development of the China-Europe Railway Express’s southern route, and enhancing collaboration in traditional areas such as economy, trade, culture, and tourism. He added that they should create new opportunities for cooperation in areas like new energy, 5G, and biomedicine.
"They should also strengthen multilateral cooperation by closely coordinating within frameworks such as the United Nations, the G20, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization to jointly uphold international order and rules, defend fairness and justice, and contribute to world peace and stability," Xi said.
