Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, the UAE\'s de facto ruler, meet in Ankara, Turkey, November 24, 2021. Murat Cetinmuhurdar/Presidential Press Office/Handout via Reuters
Ankara: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Abu Dhabi’s powerful Crown Prince oversaw the signing of several investment and cooperation deals yesterday, as Turkey and the United Arab Emirates move to repair relations and boost economic ties.
The agreements were signed during a visit by the Crown Prince, H H Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who’s seen as the de facto leader and the force behind the UAE’s foreign policy posture. It was his first official trip to Turkey since 2012, and the highest-level visit by an Emirati official since relations hit a low.
The Crown Prince’s brother who is the UAE national security adviser, H H Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, visited Turkey in August as the first major step toward mending strained ties.
The falling out between Ankara and Abu Dhabi reverberated across the Middle East.
The Crown Prince was welcomed at the Turkish presidential complex in Ankara in a ceremony that included a 21-gun salute.
He and Erdogan later oversaw the signing of almost a dozen cooperation agreements, including in trade, energy and the environment, as well as deals allowing direct investments and cooperation between the two countries’ stock exchanges and central banks. The Prince’s visit to Turkey is viewed as part of a wider effort by the UAE to recalibrate its foreign policy.
Erdogan said after his meeting with Sheikh Tahnoun in August that he expected increased investments from the UAE in Turkey. Turkey’s trade and finance ministers visited Abu Dhabi and Dubai on Tuesday, a visit that further helped set the stage for yesterday’s top level meeting in Ankara.
