President Recep Tayyip Erdogan paid official visits to Saudi Arabia and Egypt this week as part of Türkiye’s renewed diplomatic engagement with key regional partners, with talks focusing on Gaza, regional security, trade, and cooperation in Africa, including Somalia.
Erdogan first travelled to Riyadh, where he met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Discussions focused on strengthening bilateral relations, boosting trade and investment, and coordination on regional developments, particularly the situation in Gaza, according to Turkish officials.
The two sides also reviewed cooperation on regional security issues and developments in the Horn of Africa, where Türkiye and Saudi Arabia have expanded diplomatic and economic engagement in recent years.
From Riyadh, Erdogan travelled to Cairo for talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, where the two leaders co-chaired the second Turkey-Egypt High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council.
During the meetings, Erdogan and el-Sisi discussed bilateral relations, regional crises, and humanitarian efforts in Gaza. The leaders also exchanged views on developments in Africa, including Somalia, where Türkiye maintains a strong diplomatic, security and development presence.
Turkey has played a central role in Somalia for more than a decade, providing humanitarian aid, development assistance and security cooperation, and has recently intensified diplomatic efforts to support stability and dialogue in the Horn of Africa.
Several agreements were signed during Erdogan’s visit to Cairo, covering cooperation in defence, trade, health, education and youth affairs, while a Türkiye-Egypt Business Forum was also held to encourage private-sector partnerships.
Turkish officials said the back-to-back visits reflected Ankara’s aim to deepen ties with influential Arab states and enhance coordination on regional conflicts, economic cooperation and African affairs.
