The visit of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the UAE on Monday is set to be an important step towards strengthening bilateral relations.
The trip follows the visit of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, to Ankara in November, during which several agreements in the fields of finance, banking, shipping, energy and environment were signed.
Several landmarks and iconic Emirati buildings in the UAE will light up with Emirati and Turkish flags to celebrate Erdogan’s visit, including the Burj Khalifa.
Erdogan is also expected to visit the Turkish pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.
Strong ties
The value of trade between the two countries reached Dh26.4 billion in the first half of 2021, an increase of 100 per cent compared to the year-ago period.
The UAE has also recently established a $10 billion investment fund in Turkey.
In early November, the UAE provided Dh36.7 million to support the rehabilitation of some Turkish regions affected by forest fires and floods and expressed its solidarity with the Turkish people.
The UAE is Turkey’s 12th largest trading partner globally, and its largest in the Gulf region.
Nearly 400 companies in Turkey have been established with Emirati capital, with real estate being at the top of the list of Emirati investments, along with banking, ports and tourism sectors.
The total UAE investment flows to Turkey stood at about Dh18.4 billion at the end of 2020. Meanwhile, Turkish investments in the UAE until the beginning of 2020 amounted to more than Dh1.3 billion.
