(MENAFN- Trend News Agency)
Somalia is the main example that shows the importance Türkiye
attaches to the economic development, social peace and stability of
the African continent, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said
Wednesday, Trend reports citing Daily Sabah .
Speaking at a joint press conference with his Somali counterpart
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in the capital Ankara, Erdogan said that
Turkey has provided more than $1 billion worth of humanitarian aid
to Somalia in the last 10 years.
Turkey's joint steps taken with the Mogadishu government in 2011
have helped Somalia revitalize, as the country was on the brink of
collapse, Erdogan also said.
'In 2011, Somalia was on the brink of collapse as the
international community articulated. So in 2011, we paid an
official visit to Somalia with a large delegation to extend a
message to the world that we are standing with our Somali brothers
and sisters,' he added.
Noting that the joint steps taken with Somalia have aided the
country to revitalize and develop even further, Erdogan said the
bilateral trade volume reached $363 million last year, which was
only $2 million in 2013.
Turkey's largest embassy building in the world is located in the
Somali capital Mogadishu, Erdogan said, adding that his country is
proud of it.
For his part, Mohamud thanked the Turkish nation for its
investments in Somalia, expressing appreciation to Turkey and its
people for the endeavor and efforts about the humanitarian
situation his country has been facing.
Erdogan welcomed Mohamud, who was on a four-day official visit
to Turkey, with an official ceremony at the Presidential
Complex.
The leaders held one-on-one talks before delegation-level
meetings followed by a signing ceremony and a joint news
conference.
Earlier in the day, Mohamud visited Anitkabir, the mausoleum of
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Turkish republic, and laid a
wreath at his gravesite.
Paying tributes to Atatürk, Mohamud wrote in the visitors' book:
'Being a supreme commander leading the Turkish nation in the
difficult days of history has made you a torch for the Turkish
nation on this path to peace.'
Prior to his Ankara visit, the Somali president met with Somali
soldiers receiving commando training in the western Turkish
province of Isparta.
'I visited our brave soldiers undergoing commando training in
Isparta, Turkey, with the assistance of the Turkish government,' he
wrote on Twitter.
'I met some great future Somali military officers & leaders & I
am proud of them all. We are grateful to Turkey for this valuable
security assistance,' he added.
Bilateral relations and steps to enhance cooperation were mainly
discussed in depth during the visit. This was Mohamud's first
official visit to Turkey at the presidential level after taking
office in May. He also served as Somalia's president between 2012
and 2017.
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