President Erdoğan’s remarkable visit to Algeria after the OIC Summit

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will pay an official visit to Algeria today, upon the invitation of the President of the Algerian Democratic People’s Republic, Abdülmecid Tebbun, to attend the Second Meeting of the High Level Cooperation Council between Turkey and Algeria.

According to the statement made by the Presidency’s Directorate of Communications, the Council Meeting will be held in the capital Algiers under the presidency of the two Presidents and with the participation of the relevant ministers.

During the discussions to be held within the scope of the meeting, all aspects of Turkey-Algeria relations, which have gained significant momentum recently, will be reviewed and steps that can be taken to further deepen the cooperation between the two countries will be discussed.

During the meetings, in addition to bilateral relations, views will be exchanged on regional and global issues, especially the Israeli attacks on Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territories.

It is also envisaged that various agreements and memoranda of understanding will be signed during the Council Meeting, which will make significant contributions to the contractual basis of Turkey-Algeria relations.

GAZA WILL BE THE MOST IMPORTANT AGENDA ITEM IN PRESIDENT ERDOĞAN’S VISIT TO ALGERIA, IN addition to BILATERAL RELATIONS.

During President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s official visit to Algeria today, one of the most important agenda items, in addition to bilateral and regional issues, will be the situation in Gaza, which is under Israeli attacks.

While Turkey’s efforts to stop Israel’s attacks on Gaza continue, it is important that Erdogan makes his first regional visit after the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit to Algeria, which stands out with its attitude towards Israel.

While Algeria-Turkey relations have witnessed a significant movement at all levels in recent years, they have gained increasing momentum especially after Algerian President Tebbun took office in 2019.

In this context, Tebbun made his first presidential visit to Turkey 17 years after Algeria, on 15-17 May 2022, upon the invitation of President Erdoğan. The Algerian President visited Turkey for the second time on July 21, upon Erdoğan’s invitation.

The two leaders last met on September 19 at the Turkevi in ​​New York, where they were to attend the 78th General Assembly meetings of the United Nations (UN).

– ALGERIA AND TURKEY HAVE DEEP-ROOTED HISTORICAL RELATIONSHIPS

Turkey-Algeria official relations, which started in 1962 when Algeria gained independence from France, continue strongly.

Turkey-Algeria relations, which started with the arrival of Barbaros Hayrettin Pasha and his brothers in Algeria in 1516, witnessed many advances in political, economic and cultural fields in the 2000s.

Turkey opened its embassy in Algeria, which declared its independence in 1962, in 1963.

The last presidential visit from Algeria to Turkey before Tebbun was made by Abdulaziz Bouteflika in February 2005.

A “Friendship and Cooperation Agreement” was signed between the two countries in 2006 to improve relations.

The last presidential visit from Turkey to Algeria was made by President Erdoğan in January 2020.

As part of the visit, a joint declaration regarding the establishment of a “High Level Cooperation Council” was signed between the two countries.

Algeria and Turkey maintain their relations in full coordination in their efforts to find solutions to the Israeli issue as well as regional issues.

President Erdoğan confirmed this situation in his statement on the plane upon his return from Saudi Arabia, where the OIC Extraordinary Summit was held on November 12.

Emphasizing that he attaches great importance to his visit to Algeria on November 21, Erdoğan said, “Because among these countries, Algeria is a country that can always express its stance clearly, a country with a wide influence in Africa. That is why I attach great importance to this meeting with Mr. Tebbun. I hope so.” “We will continue this calendar successfully.” he said.

– TARGET IN BILATERAL TRADE VOLUME IS 10 BILLION DOLLARS

During Erdoğan’s visit, in addition to the situation in Gaza, issues aimed at strengthening Turkey-Algeria relations in all areas will also be discussed. The most important of these will be increasing economic relations.

Turkey’s Ambassador to Algeria, Muhammet Mücahit Küçükyılmaz, stated in his statement to the AA correspondent that there are many steps to be taken between the two countries and that the potential of Turkey and Algeria, especially in economic fields, is very high.

Stating that Turkish investments have exceeded 6 billion dollars in Algeria today, Ambassador Küçükyılmaz said, “The trade volume between Turkey and Algeria reached 5.3 billion dollars in 2022. Hopefully, we expect to exceed the 6 billion dollar figure in 2023. Our President and Mr. President Tebbun We plan to reach the 10 billion dollar trade volume target set by . he said.

Emphasizing that the process of putting the mutual investment incentive agreement into practice and signing the negotiation framework document regarding the preferential trade agreement and starting negotiations is important in order to achieve these goals, Küçükyılmaz said that the agreement between Algeria’s national oil and gas company Sonatrach and Turkish Pipelines and Petrol Transportation Inc. (BOTAŞ) He also stated that it is expected to be renewed.

The Ambassador stated that more than 10 agreements, some of which concern the economic aspect and some concern the cultural aspect, are on the agenda, including the opening of the Ziraat Bank branch, the Maarif School and the Yunus Emre Institute Cultural Center in Algeria.

– ALGERIA WAS IN FULL SOLIDARITY WITH Türkiye DURING THE KAHRAMANMARAŞ EARTHQUAKES

Algeria announced that it would provide 30 million dollars of support to Turkey after the Kahramanmaraş-centered earthquakes on February 6, which were described as the “disaster of the century”.

All state officials, especially Algerian President Tebbun, who called President Erdoğan and wished him a speedy recovery, expressed their full solidarity with Turkey by publishing messages of condolence and support.

In addition to the 86-person search and rescue team sent to Turkey, a medical delegation from the Algerian Red Crescent and 95 tons of humanitarian aid materials also arrived in the earthquake zone in Turkey.

Calls for support that started on social media platforms in Algeria, as well as in solidarity with earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria, quickly turned into comprehensive aid campaigns.

Algerian athletes, politicians and citizens expressed their support for the Turkish state and people through their posts on social media since the first day of the earthquake.

– “NATIONAL ORDER OF MERIT” FROM TEBBUN TO TURKEY’S FORMER AMBASSADOR TO ALGERIA

Algerian President Tebbun presented the “First Degree Algerian National Order of Merit” to former Algerian Ambassador Mahinur Özdemir Göktaş, who was entrusted with the position of Minister of Family and Social Services in the cabinet established after the Presidential Election in Turkey, on June 19.

Comments were made in the country’s media that the medal of merit in question was an indication of Ambassador Göktaş’s strong contribution to the relations between the two countries and the importance President Tebbun attaches to his country’s relations with Turkey.