Ethiopia Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed has Friday held talks with the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as the two leaders committed to accelerate the existing good bilateral relations between the two countries.
The two leaders met on the sidelines of the 3rd Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit, which is being held under the theme “Enhanced Partnership for Common Development and Prosperity.”
Using twitter, the Ethiopian leader said Turkey’s historical relations are rooted from mutual respect.
“My delegation and I met with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan today in a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Turkey Africa Summit. The historical relations between our two countries have always been rooted in mutual respect,” writes the Prime Minister.
“Our partnership continues based on constructive engagement,” he adds.
Erdoğan is tomorrow December 18 expected to address the summit which is also attended by 16 heads of state and government and 102 African ministers
Foreign Minister
According to Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Turkey’s Foreign Affairs Minister, the aim of the summit “is to win together with Africa, to walk towards the future together. Turkey’s approach to relations with Africa is strategic, long-term.”
During the summit, leaders will adopt an action plan on what they will do in the next five years. They also aim to put in place an action plan under five main topics which include development, trade, industry and education.
This Summit came on the heels of a top-level business forum in October that focused on investment and trade. The next phase of this fast-blossoming relationship is security, experts say, with a host of African leaders looking to buy up military hardware at cheaper prices and with fewer strings attached.
Ethiopia and Turkey have had good historical and cultural ties largely focused on the economy. For example, Turkey’s investment in Ethiopia is about $ 3 billion. According to official reports, Turkey, which invests heavily in the textile sector, is the second largest investor in Ethiopia after China. Turkish companies in Ethiopia have morevthan 20,000 Ethiopian employees.
Speaking in August at the inauguration of the new Ethiopian Embassy in Ankara, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, lauded Ethiopia’s efforts to fight terrorism and pledged his country’s cooperation in this regard.
Although relations between the two countries have for centuries been largely dependent on the economic sector, Ethiopian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Dina Mufti said there is a desire to expand Ethiopia’s relations with Turkey in a multi-faceted manner, including security.