* On the 98th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the Turkish Republic, Dr Mustafa Goksu highlights the deep and strong bilateral ties in various fields
The bilateral relations between Turkey and Qatar are historically strong, solid and diverse, Turkish ambassador in Doha Dr Mustafa Goksu has said.
On the 98th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the Turkish Republic, which falls on October 29, Dr Goksu elaborated on the deep and strong Qatar-Turkey relations in various fields.
The relations have moved from co-operation to the level of strategic partnership, where both countries have been co-operating on many issues at the bilateral, regional and international levels for many years, and such relations have witnessed remarkable progress in recent years in all fields, he pointed out.
Dr Goksu said it is the anniversary of the proclamation of the Turkish Republic by its founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923. On this date, the Turkish National Assembly laid the foundations of the modern democratic Turkish state, after winning the national war of independence.
He stressed that the Turkish-Qatari relations are not new; rather they are historical since the end of the 19th century, and continued to develop even after the establishment of the Turkish Republic, to witness remarkable development in the 90s of the last century. Those relations have witnessed a qualitative leap due to the growing relations between the two peoples and their common interests. The foreign policies of Turkey and Qatar share the same principles in terms of activating mediation, diplomacy and dialogue efforts as a basis for resolving disputes. Doha has become an important platform for United Nations bodies and the capital of dialogue in international conflicts, he observed.
"Both Turkey and Qatar are aligned with truth and justice that achieve the interests of the peoples, which is the common factor in the Qatari and Turkish views and positions," he stressed.
The ambassador said, "thanks to our strong relations, based not only on our common interests, but also on mutual, sincere fraternity, the relations between our two countries have made great progress in many areas."
As a proof of this, on November 26, 2020, the sixth meeting of the Turkish-Qatari Supreme Strategic Committee was held in Ankara, co-chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, with the aim of further consolidating co-operation.
The 68 agreements and co-operation protocols signed during the committee's meetings, held annually since 2015, "have made significant contributions to diversifying and deepening our relations".
"It will hold its next meeting before the end of this year and new agreements will be signed. Thanks to all these agreements, our bilateral relations, which have developed rapidly in all fields and have acquired a strategic character based on mutual trust, have been given a contractual basis," he noted.
Dr Goksu further explained that the volume of bilateral trade exchange increased in the last 10 years from $340mn to $2.24bn, stressing his confidence that these figures will double in the coming years.
He said there are 619 Turkish companies operating in Qatar in various sectors, especially construction, while there are 182 Qatari companies operating in a wide range of sectors in Turkey. The total balance of Qatari investment in Turkey amounted to $33.2bn until the end of 2020, while the levels of Turkey's direct investments in Qatar amounted to $118mn. Besides, Qatari citizens are also among the most popular tourists visiting Turkey.
The number of Qatari tourists to Turkey in recent years has reached about 140,000.
"I take this opportunity to congratulate the Qatari people for the completion of a large number of World Cup facilities ahead of schedule. It is with great pleasure that Turkish construction companies are contributing to infrastructure projects in Qatar, which since 2002 have amounted to more than $18bn," he said.
He further stressed that the Turkish-Qatari relations are diverse and comprehensive, and in order to strengthen the cultural ties between our two countries, Turkiye Maarif Vakf? has reached an agreement with Qatar University (QU) and Lusail University to grant full scholarships for students from Turkey to study in Qatar. Thirty Turkish students were accredited by Qatar University this year, and 10 by Lusail University, to receive bachelor's degrees in various fields, with a full scholarship after learning the Arabic language.
In the meantime, he noted that performance of the Turkish economy appeared strongly with the lifting of restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the national income grew by 21.7% in the second quarter of this year. He affirmed that "Qatari investments in Turkey are safe, prosperous and successful, and are an indication of the Qatari investor's confidence in Turkey and its distinguished investment climate".
On the 98th anniversary celebrations of the founding of the Turkish Republic, which falls on October 29, Dr Goksu elaborated on the deep and strong Qatar-Turkey relations in various fields.
The relations have moved from co-operation to the level of strategic partnership, where both countries have been co-operating on many issues at the bilateral, regional and international levels for many years, and such relations have witnessed remarkable progress in recent years in all fields, he pointed out.
Dr Goksu said it is the anniversary of the proclamation of the Turkish Republic by its founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923. On this date, the Turkish National Assembly laid the foundations of the modern democratic Turkish state, after winning the national war of independence.
He stressed that the Turkish-Qatari relations are not new; rather they are historical since the end of the 19th century, and continued to develop even after the establishment of the Turkish Republic, to witness remarkable development in the 90s of the last century. Those relations have witnessed a qualitative leap due to the growing relations between the two peoples and their common interests. The foreign policies of Turkey and Qatar share the same principles in terms of activating mediation, diplomacy and dialogue efforts as a basis for resolving disputes. Doha has become an important platform for United Nations bodies and the capital of dialogue in international conflicts, he observed.
"Both Turkey and Qatar are aligned with truth and justice that achieve the interests of the peoples, which is the common factor in the Qatari and Turkish views and positions," he stressed.
The ambassador said, "thanks to our strong relations, based not only on our common interests, but also on mutual, sincere fraternity, the relations between our two countries have made great progress in many areas."
As a proof of this, on November 26, 2020, the sixth meeting of the Turkish-Qatari Supreme Strategic Committee was held in Ankara, co-chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, with the aim of further consolidating co-operation.
The 68 agreements and co-operation protocols signed during the committee's meetings, held annually since 2015, "have made significant contributions to diversifying and deepening our relations".
"It will hold its next meeting before the end of this year and new agreements will be signed. Thanks to all these agreements, our bilateral relations, which have developed rapidly in all fields and have acquired a strategic character based on mutual trust, have been given a contractual basis," he noted.
Dr Goksu further explained that the volume of bilateral trade exchange increased in the last 10 years from $340mn to $2.24bn, stressing his confidence that these figures will double in the coming years.
He said there are 619 Turkish companies operating in Qatar in various sectors, especially construction, while there are 182 Qatari companies operating in a wide range of sectors in Turkey. The total balance of Qatari investment in Turkey amounted to $33.2bn until the end of 2020, while the levels of Turkey's direct investments in Qatar amounted to $118mn. Besides, Qatari citizens are also among the most popular tourists visiting Turkey.
The number of Qatari tourists to Turkey in recent years has reached about 140,000.
"I take this opportunity to congratulate the Qatari people for the completion of a large number of World Cup facilities ahead of schedule. It is with great pleasure that Turkish construction companies are contributing to infrastructure projects in Qatar, which since 2002 have amounted to more than $18bn," he said.
He further stressed that the Turkish-Qatari relations are diverse and comprehensive, and in order to strengthen the cultural ties between our two countries, Turkiye Maarif Vakf? has reached an agreement with Qatar University (QU) and Lusail University to grant full scholarships for students from Turkey to study in Qatar. Thirty Turkish students were accredited by Qatar University this year, and 10 by Lusail University, to receive bachelor's degrees in various fields, with a full scholarship after learning the Arabic language.
In the meantime, he noted that performance of the Turkish economy appeared strongly with the lifting of restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic, and the national income grew by 21.7% in the second quarter of this year. He affirmed that "Qatari investments in Turkey are safe, prosperous and successful, and are an indication of the Qatari investor's confidence in Turkey and its distinguished investment climate".
