President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan arrived in Ethiopia on Tuesday in an official visit, a first to the country since 2015.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed welcomed Erdoğan at an elaborate ceremony at the presidential palace.
Türkiye boosted ties with the country in recent years and acted as mediator in Ethiopia’s dispute with Somalia.
The two countries also mark 100 years since the opening of the Turkish Embassy in Addis Ababa and trace their relations back to the Ottoman times.
Both state-owned and private media outlets in Ethiopia have broadly portrayed the visit positively, emphasizing longstanding ties, growing economic engagement and Ankara's diplomatic role in the region.
State-run Fana Broadcasting Corporation has framed the visit as a level up in bilateral relations. In one article about the Turkish president, the headline portrayed him as "the architect of the new Türkiye." Private media outlet Addis Standard also reported on the visit, linking it to tensions in the Horn of Africa and Türkiye's diplomatic engagement in the region. Its coverage said the two countries are expected to sign various cooperation agreements that have already been reached at the official level.
Speaking at an event marking the century-old bilateral relations, Türkiye's ambassador to Ethiopia, Berk Baran, said Erdoğan's visit marks "the elevation of already strong ties."
"Türkiye and Ethiopia already enjoy a strategic relationship in various aspects, including political, economic and social relations," he said.
Analysts say the relationship has been shaped by mutual political understanding, even when national interests differed.
"I believe Türkiye understands Ethiopia's positions. We've seen this during the Nile dispute. We have seen this during its quest for sea access, and this stems from similarities of geographical context and statehood history," said Ibrahim Mulushewa, a researcher and head of a think-tank based in Addis Ababa, speaking at a panel marking the centennial of ties.
He said this shared perspective has enabled direct engagement between the two countries. "Turkish understanding sometimes might not be on the same page, but at least both countries see the perspectives. And that very reason created dialogic and direct relations, which also made Türkiye succeed in mediating very sensitive regional matters like that of the Ethiopia-Somalia dispute, which was resolved through the historic Ankara declaration," he said.
Erdoğan’s visit to Ethiopia will affirm Ankara’s commitment to peace between Addis Ababa and Mogadishu. Ethiopia’s deal with Somaliland for the use of ports and access to the sea has triggered a crisis with Somalia. In 2025, Türkiye stepped in and helped two countries sign the Ankara Declaration by hosting their leaders in the Turkish capital, de-escalating tensions in the region.
Türkiye and Ethiopia boosted their trade volume in 2025, with a 5% increase. Their trade volume currently stands at $253 million. Türkiye is among the four major investors in the African country.
Türkiye's engagement with the continent gained unprecedented pace after Ankara declared 2005 as the "Year of Africa." Erdoğan said this initiative opened a "new chapter" in their relations.
"Since then, 20 years have passed, and over these two decades, we have advanced our relations hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder, and most importantly, heart to heart, to a level that could not even be imagined," he told the Türkiye-Africa Business and Economic Forum in Istanbul in October.
Ankara has repeatedly presented itself as a fairer player than the continent’s former colonial powers, touting cooperation based on equal partnership and a win-win principle.
Erdoğan himself has made more than 50 visits to African nations since he became prime minister in 2023.
Over the years, Türkiye increased the number of its embassies on the continent to 44.
The goal is to lift this figure to 50 in the short term. Currently, 38 African countries have embassies operating in Ankara.
