Strategic Partnerships and Billion-Dollar Agreements: What Are the Results of Erdogan’s Gulf Tour?

Over the past decade, Turkish foreign policy toward Gulf states has experienced fluctuations and tensions. Nevertheless, in the last two years, a noteworthy shift has occurred with the normalization of relations and reciprocal visits taking place.

Recent developments and internal tensions over interference in each other’s internal affairs played a crucial role in shaping Turkiye’s relations with the Gulf states.

With a notable improvement in relations with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia after a prolonged period, Turkiye’s relations with Qatar have been even stronger.

Starting from July 17, 2023, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan embarked on a 3-day Gulf tour, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, resulting in the signing of agreements and memoranda of cooperation worth billions of dollars.

 

Prominent Agreements

The financial and business sectors appear to be the primary beneficiaries of Turkiye’s strengthened ties with the Gulf states. Turkish private companies signed 26 agreements with the three Gulf countries during Erdogan’s tour.

Business forums were held during the tour, with about 200 Turkish businessmen participating from various sectors, including real estate, construction, industry, agriculture, food, information technology, smart cities, ports, and banks. Moreover, investors from those countries showed keen interest.

Turkiye and the United Arab Emirates signed 13 agreements worth $50.7 billion, while Turkiye and Qatar celebrated 50 years of diplomatic relations with a joint statement envisioning a promising future of enhanced economic and trade cooperation.

Similarly, Turkiye signed agreements with Saudi Arabia in the fields of direct investment, defense industries, energy, defense, and communications.

Erdogan emphasized that bilateral trade with the Gulf countries rose from $1.6 billion to around $22 billion in the past 20 years and aims to reach $30 billion.

This Gulf tour came at a crucial time when Turkiye was considering its foreign policy steps, and it has proved to be of great importance.

The visit was widely covered in local media, highlighting the historical brotherly relations between Turkiye and Saudi Arabia. Turkish government-affiliated newspapers saw this visit as an opportunity for new prospects.

The key issue in the relations between Turkiye and the Gulf states is not short-term resources, known as hot money from the Gulf, but rather the need for a long-term investment fund.

The agreements signed between Turkiye and Saudi Arabia encompassed five areas, including direct investment, defense industries, energy, and communications.

During Erdogan’s meetings with ministers and businessmen, discussions focused on steps to enhance and develop existing relations, particularly opportunities for increased economic cooperation.

According to official statements, over 1400 Saudi companies operate in Turkiye, and the economic environment in Saudi Arabia has led to 390 Turkish companies investing in the Saudi market. This cooperation is expected to bear fruit in the region in the coming period.

Assessing and understanding the relationship solely from an economic perspective would be limiting, as the Gulf countries are willing to enhance cooperation with Turkiye, which holds strategic importance in various other sectors.

Considering the visits as an outcome rather than a trigger, they can be further developed based on the foundations of security, diplomacy, and economy.

Before President Erdogan’s Gulf tour, his deputy, Cevdet Yılmaz, and Minister of Treasury and Finance, Mehmet Simsek, traveled to the region and met with officials.

Press reports suggest that Gulf capitals are focused on investment and buying options in various sectors in Turkiye, such as energy, food, agriculture, healthcare, medicine, logistics, transport, and defense.

Saudi Arabia, for instance, signed contracts with Turkiye to purchase the renowned Bayraktar TB2 drones, along with an executive plan for defense cooperation between the two countries.

The Saudi Defense Minister, Khalid bin Salman, expressed his satisfaction with the signing of the defense cooperation plan with Turkiye’s National Defense Minister, Hulusi Akar, saying it comes as a culmination of the friendly nations’ cooperation in the defense and military domains.

Moreover, Turkiye and Saudi Arabia signed agreements in direct investment, defense industries, energy, defense, and communications.

 

Strong Relation

President Erdogan’s second stop was in the friendly and brotherly nation of Qatar.

The relations between both countries, rooted in deep friendship and brotherhood, are rapidly advancing across all sectors.

Mutual visits have positive effects on relations. During this fraternal atmosphere, the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad, officially welcomed President Erdogan in Doha.

The two leaders held a meeting between their delegations at the Lusail Palace following their bilateral meeting. President Erdoğan gifted a Turkish-made TOGG car to Emir Tamim before they traveled to the venue of the talks in the Turkish car.

Under the auspices of President Erdogan and Emir Tamim, a bilateral agreement was signed on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Republic of Turkiye and the State of Qatar.

Representing the Republic of Turkiye, Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, and representing the State of Qatar, Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, signed the 100-document agreement.

In a joint statement, both sides expressed their delight in celebrating the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations.

The relations between Turkiye and Qatar have witnessed a qualitative transformation, reaching the stage of strategic partnership, according to the statement.

The current cooperation between the two fraternal countries is growing stronger day by day under the wise leadership of Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

The joint statement emphasized that the deep-rooted cultural, social, and religious ties, drawn from the depths of history, unite the peoples of both countries.

In addition, other significant topics were discussed, such as regional security, counter-terrorism, and combating drug trafficking, which found their place among the options for joint action.

Moreover, investment opportunities were explored in bilateral and multilateral meetings, along with discussions on increasing the volume of foreign trade and the type of communications that could be established with third-party countries.

It is worth noting that in the past nine years, President Erdogan and Emir Tamim attended 32 summits and signed nearly 100 agreements.

According to the joint agreement on the establishment of a High-Level Strategic Committee between the Republic of Turkiye and the State of Qatar, signed on December 19, 2014, the two countries collaborated in the field of military training and defense industries. Additionally, a military base was established in Qatar for the Turkish Armed Forces, the two countries cooperated in military training and defense industries, and a military base for the Turkish Armed Forces was established in Qatar.

According to the agreement, the Turkish Armed Forces were stationed in Qatar, and joint military exercises were conducted between the two countries.

Both nations have also taken synchronized steps in foreign policy, with both the Qatari and Turkish governments declaring that they do not consider the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, in contrast to Egypt’s view.

Additionally, the two countries condemned the military coup that ousted Egypt’s first elected president, Mohamed Morsi, in 2013.

Qatar and Turkiye have close relations with the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, as both countries host members of the movement.

 

An important stop during the tour was the United Arab Emirates, one of the significant countries in the Arabian Gulf region.

Relations between Turkiye and the UAE, with a population of approximately 10 million, began in 1977.

It is noteworthy that diplomatic relations between the two countries, which have experienced fluctuations over time between highs and lows, do not completely deteriorate due to their trade relations. Turkiye is among the top 10 trading partners of the UAE.

With the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the two countries, nearly 25,000 job opportunities were created in the UAE and 100,000 in Turkiye.

During his visit to the UAE under these circumstances, President Erdogan was officially welcomed by UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Despite being one of the countries allegedly linked to the attempted coup in Turkiye on July 15, 2016, the UAE broke the ice with Turkiye through intensive diplomatic efforts.

During the visit, President Erdogan and Al Nahyan also chaired a meeting between the delegations at the Presidential Palace in Abu Dhabi.

Erdogan expressed his happiness with the development of close dialogue and cooperation on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations with the UAE.

He stated that by signing the joint memorandum of understanding, the relations would reach the level of strategic partnership. Thirteen agreements worth $50.7 billion were signed between the two countries during the visit.

Erdogan mentioned that the agreements were signed in areas such as investment, economy, industry, defense, law, justice, renewable energy, and space industry.

In this context, both sides agreed to establish a High-Level Strategic Committee chaired by the Turkish and Emirati presidents.

During the visit, President Erdogan also received the Order of the UAE, and the UAE–Turkiye Business Forum started, calling for “increased investments and cooperation.”

The forum gathered a large number of businessmen from both countries representing various sectors, especially real estate, construction, industry, agriculture, food, information technology, and banking services.

The participants exchanged ideas on improving the relations, and the groundwork was laid for positive actions to be taken in the future.

As a result, during his Gulf visit, President Erdogan made significant progress in developing strong relations in military, diplomatic, and cultural fields, as well as in the economic domain.

While Gulf investments will bolster the Turkish economy, Turkish security support will also serve as a protective shield for the Gulf countries.

It is expected that mutual interests will positively contribute to serving peace and prosperity in the region.