Turkey’s Ambassador to Dhaka, Mustafa Osman Turan, said that during Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu’s visit to Bangladesh, many issues from bilateral trade to Rohingya refugees were discussed and mutual political will was demonstrated on these issues.
Evaluating the official visit of Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu to Bangladesh to the AA correspondent, Turan stated that cooperation in many areas from bilateral trade to Rohingya Muslims was discussed and explained the developments expected to be implemented in the coming period.
Pointing out that there were not many high-level visits to the country during the new type of coronavirus (Covid-19) epidemic, Turan said, “Our Minister’s visit to Bangladesh during this difficult period had a significant impact. We provided 5 tons of medical aid to Bangladesh, which is very important.” was welcomed.” said.
Stating that the bilateral trade volume did not decrease despite the epidemic, Turan emphasized that they plan to double the trade, which is currently 1 billion dollars, in the next period. Turan said, “We want to bring more investors from Turkey to Bangladesh because this is a very advantageous country. It is advantageous both in terms of qualified workforce and being a large market. Since Bangladesh is in the category of underdeveloped countries, duty-free sales are made to many places such as the European Union.” “He can do it.” he said.
Stating that Turkish and Bangladeshi businessmen will come together and sign agreements in the coming period, Turan said:
“In the coming period, an agreement will be signed between the institutions representative of the business world here and the Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEIK). In addition, two virtual meetings will be held between the business people of the two countries. We expect important results from those meetings. The common political will on this issue was confirmed during the visit of our Minister.” “In addition, there are special economic zones in Bangladesh. Some of them are allocated to countries. Bangladesh also wants to allocate special economic zones for our investors.”
Turan also emphasized that a hospital will be built in the country with public-private sector cooperation and that Bangladesh will allocate land for this.
“We support Bangladesh regarding the Rohingya issue”
Reminding that there was a new influx of Rohingya Muslim refugees to Bangladesh in 2017, Turan said that approximately 1 million refugees living in camps in the country were helped by institutions such as the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD), the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) and the Turkish Red Crescent, as well as Turkish NGOs. He said that aid was provided through ‘s.
Turan underlined that Çavuşoğlu emphasized that this aid will continue and said, “Bangladesh wants the Rohingya to return to Myanmar and to pressure Myanmar internationally for this. Because an agreement was signed on the return, but Myanmar does not implement it. We are in agreement with Bangladesh on that issue.” “Our cooperation is in question. There are cases filed against individuals and the Myanmar state in the International Criminal Court. We also support Bangladesh in those court processes.” he said.
Referring to Bangladesh’s desire to move approximately 10 percent of the Rohingya living in camps to a camp to be established on Bhasan Char Island, Turan said, “The conditions on the island must comply with the United Nations (UN) standards. Otherwise, donor countries do not want to take a step. We told our Minister, ‘ Will Turkey support this issue?’ “Turkey is ready to provide aid. If the UN gives a positive report on the conditions on the island, we will continue our aid like other donor countries. Our Minister also recommended the Bangladesh government to cooperate with the UN on this issue.” he said.
“Turkey stands out as an important supplier country in the field of defense industry”
Stating that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is expected to visit Bangladesh in the coming period, Turan pointed out that this visit is important within the framework of Turkey’s “Asia Again” policy.
Noting that the issues of cooperation in the field of defense industry were also touched upon during Çavuşoğlu’s visit, Turan said, “The defense industry is an important area of cooperation. There are agreements signed between the armed forces of the two countries and relations developed by some defense companies on this subject. In the coming period, there will be more cooperation in parallel with the development of our bilateral relations.” “We want to cooperate. Bangladesh has done this trade with other countries so far, but from now on they want to diversify the countries they buy from. Turkey also stands out as an important supplier country in this regard.” said.
Reminding that Bangladesh and Turkey mutually opened new embassy buildings a few months apart, Turan said, “These buildings are truly a source of pride. The parallel opening of embassies and the fact that serious investments have been made show the value we attach to bilateral relations.” he said.
