Turkey, Qatar boost cooperation with 15 new bilateral accords

Turkey and Qatar have signed 15 new agreements to boost cooperation between the two countries in various areas including trade, investment and diplomacy.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani participated in the signing ceremony of 12 of the agreements on Tuesday.

"As Turkey, we attach great importance to the peace and well-being of the entire Gulf region, including Qatar," said President Erdogan in his address to Turkish-Qatar Combined Joint Force Command following the signing ceremony.

"Regardless of their origin or sect, all of the Gulf’s people are our own brothers and sisters. With this in mind, we are trying to further our co-operation with all Gulf countries on the basis of mutual interest and respect," he added.

The agreements signed between the two countries also included development, culture, youth, sports, health, religious affairs, and media.

Earlier, Erdogan was welcomed with an official ceremony by Al Thani and the duo held a one-on-one meeting at the Amiri Diwan, the emir’s office.

The meeting lasted for two hours and was closed to the media, according to an Anadolu Agency reporter.

Two-day trip

Erdogan arrived in the Qatari capital on Monday for a two-day working visit upon the invitation of Al Thani.

He was accompanied by a high-level delegation, including Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Defence Minister Hulusi Akar, and intelligence chief Hakan Fidan.

Ahead of Erdogan's arrival, Cavusoglu held a joint press briefing on Monday with his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.

The two ministers discussed ways to keep Afghanistan's Kabul airport open and deliver further aid to the country.

The Presidency's Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun and the head of Turkey's Religious Affairs, Ali Erbas were also present for talks.

READ MORE: Turkey, Qatar to 'act together' to reopen Afghanistan's Kabul airport