Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates on Wednesday signed seven bilateral agreements during a high-level visit by UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, marking a major step forward in deepening strategic cooperation across key sectors.
The signing ceremony, held in Ankara, followed a one-on-one meeting between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Sheikh Mohammed, as well as the inaugural session of the Türkiye-UAE High-Level Strategic Council.
“We laid the foundation of our strategic partnership during my 2023 visit to Abu Dhabi,” Erdoğan said. “Thankfully, this partnership has started to bear fruit across nearly every sector — from trade and infrastructure to defense, energy, technology, and transportation.”
Erdoğan said bilateral trade has grown rapidly, noting that while a few years ago the two sides wondered whether a $10 billion trade volume was within reach, they now aim to exceed $20 billion this year. “With decisive steps from both sides, I’m confident we’ll meet our medium-term target of $40 billion,” he added.
The Turkish president said the two leaders also had a productive exchange on regional issues, particularly the situation in Gaza.
Among the agreements signed was a memorandum of understanding on investment cooperation in tourism and hospitality, signed by Ahmet Burak Dağlıoğlu, head of the Investment Office of the Presidency of Türkiye, and UAE Investment Minister Mohamed Hassan Al Suwaidi.
Other MoUs included cooperation in pharmaceuticals, industry and manufacturing, and food and agriculture.
A separate agreement on the mutual protection of classified information was signed by Türkiye’s National Defense Minister Yaşar Güler and UAE State Minister for Defense Affairs Mohammed Mubarak Al Mazrouei. Another memorandum on cooperation in polar research was signed by Türkiye’s Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacır and UAE Industry and Advanced Technology Minister Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber.
Additional deals covered the formation of a joint consular committee and cooperation in polar research, with signatories from both countries’ respective ministries.
The two leaders have recently been in close contact, especially over the Iran-Israel tensions and the ongoing Israeli attacks on Palestinians in Gaza.
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.
