The improved coordination between Turkey and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is an important extra asset in the struggle to restore the region to peace and stability. Turkey is a very important neighbour of the Arab world and an immediate neighbour to the failed state of Syria and the troubled state of Iraq. The recent meeting in Riyadh between the foreign ministers of Turkey and the GCC was a crucial step to strengthen strategic ties as both sides sought to define more precisely their growing responsibilities in addressing the challenges and facing the threats to the region’s security and stability. It is a welcome development that both sides recognise the importance of a joint approach.
The recent visit to Turkey by Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, was in the context of this closer cooperation and it was important that he made the point that the UAE was pleased to see the Turkish people rallying behind their leadership after the failed coup. At the regional level, Shaikh Abdullah welcomed Turkey’s actions in the region’s dominant trouble spots of Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Libya and he emphasised the importance of Turkey and the GCC working together to coordinate their approaches in these states. An important part of rebuilding the national governments in these countries is to deal with the threat of terror and Shaikh Abdullah paid his tribute to Turkey’s role in that struggle. On the vexed issue of the Arab world’s troubled relations with Iran, Shaikh Abdullah thanked the Turks for their support of the UAE’s struggle to maintain its rights to the three islands in the Gulf that have been occupied by Iran, and he also thanked the Turks for their backing of the Arab Coalition, which is fighting to support the legitimate government in Yemen against rebels backed by the Iranians.
The GCC-Turkey free trade zone needs to progress more quickly, and while commercial ties at the bilateral level may be strong, they can still be improved upon. Shaikh Abdullah referred to the huge potential for increasing trade and joint investments, noting that “the UAE is currently home to over 10,000 Turkish citizens, who deserve to be thanked for their role in deepening ties between the two countries”. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu reciprocated by saying that Turkey was looking forward to enhancing its ties with the UAE.
