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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler, the strongest sign yet of a turnaround in relations since the 2018 murder of a prominent Saudi critic in Istanbul.
Erdogan met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and his father King Salman bin Abdulaziz in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Thursday. Erdogan's looking to bolster trade and lure investment from oil exporters as Turkey's floundering economy costs him support ahead of elections scheduled for next year.
Ankara hopes the rapprochement between the two Group of Twenty economies will help restore trade to previous levels and boost Saudi investment. It's part of a broader realignment that's seen regional rivals heal rifts and step back from conflicts since U.S. President Joe Biden took office.
“I believe that we will carry our relations beyond the level in the past in every field,” Erdogan said in a Twitter posting after meeting the crown prince, adding that his visit during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan “will open the doors of a new era with our friend and brother Saudi Arabia.”
Speaking in Istanbul before flying to Jeddah, Erdogan said the two economies complement each other and that the visit showed “joint will to start a new period of cooperation.”
Turkey and Saudi Arabia have been working on a rapprochement for months. Turkey this month ended its trial over the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents at the kingdom's consulate in Istanbul. Its decision to transfer the case to Saudi Arabia removed a key obstacle to improved ties and Erdogan's visit.
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A U.S. intelligence assessment concluded that the Saudi crown prince had likely ordered the operation. The prince has denied any involvement, though he's said he accepts responsibility for the killing as Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler.
Erdogan's visit comes a day after Turkey's Finance Minister Nureddin Nebati held online talks with his Saudi counterpart Mohammed Al-Jadaan. “We exchanged ideas in the fields of economy, trade and investment in order to develop cooperation between our countries,” Nebati said on Twitter.
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Shipments to Saudi Arabia, once a key market for Turkey, slumped in late 2020, coinciding with what Turkish exporters said was an unofficial boycott. Last year, Turkish exports were just over $200 million, down from around $3.2 billion in 2019, according to official Turkish data.
The trip is part of a broader effort to mend relations with Gulf Arab countries after years of hostility fueled by Erdogan's support for Islamist groups during the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings. A warming of relations with the United Arab Emirates last year has already unlocked billions of dollars worth of potential business.
The UAE signed a $4.9 billion currency swap with Turkey in January, offering Turkey's beleaguered currency much-needed support. The UAE has outlined plans for a $10 billion fund to support investments as it seeks to at least double bilateral trade.
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