Turkish president meets with senior Chinese diplomat on bilateral ties
By MO JINGXI | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2023-07-27 09:42
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that his country does not support NATO to intensify its activities in the Asia-Pacific region and is willing to keep communication and coordination with China over the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and other regional and global issues.
Erdogan made the remarks when meeting with senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in Ankara. Wang, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, is making a visit to Turkiye after attending a BRICS meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa.
It was their first meeting since Erdogan won the reelection in May.
The Turkish president said that both Turkiye and China are countries with global influence and the significance of cooperation between the two countries goes beyond the bilateral level.
He also stressed Turkiye's adherence to the one-China principle, saying that his country does not consider China as a threat and is ready to cooperate with China to bring bilateral ties to a new level.
Erdogan said his country is willing to engage in close high-level exchanges with China, better align Turkiye's Middle Corridor with the Belt and Road Initiative, and deepen bilateral cooperation in trade, energy, tourism and other areas.
He added that Turkiye welcomes more Chinese investment.
Wang said China congratulated Erdogan on his reelection and supports Turkiye to stay independent and follow a development path that suits its own national conditions.
He noted that there is no severe conflict between China and Turkiye, which have extensive common interests and enjoy broad prospects in their relationship.
China pays high attention to its relations with Turkiye and will work with Turkiye to support each other on their respective journey to national rejuvenation, take care of each other on issues concerning core interests, and will maintain and deepen political mutual trust, Wang said.
Wang said that China stands ready to fully restart pragmatic cooperation with Turkiye by making good use of the governmental cooperation mechanism, promote the building of the Belt and Road, and achieve a higher-level of mutual benefits.
He also called on the two countries to make positive contributions to recovering the global economy.
