Hamid, Erdogan meet in Istanbul, discuss ways to better ties

President Md Abdul Hamid and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan have met in Istanbul and discussed ways to strengthen bilateral ties.

The two heads of state sat in a bilateral meeting on Wednesday on the sidelines of a special summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation on the recent shift in the US position on Jerusalem.

Hamid told Erdogan that the ‘excellent’ ties between Bangladesh and Turkey were getting ‘stronger’, the President’s Press Secretary Joynal Abedin told bdnews24.com after the meeting at the Istanbul Congress and Exhibition Centre.

The president also said Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım’s visit to Bangladesh, slated for Dec 19, would bolster the ties.

Press Secretary said Erdogan told Hamid that Turkey put ‘special emphasis’ on improving relations with Bangladesh.

The Turkish president also stressed the need for joint efforts to explore possible sectors of bilateral cooperation.

President Hamid thanked Erdogan for calling the OIC summit on the Jerusalem issue and their support for Bangladesh to tackle the Rohingya refugee crisis.

Hamid sought Turkey’s support for Bangladesh’s candidacy for the post of assistant secretary general on science and technology from Asia in the OIC.

Erdogan assured Hamid of continuing cooperation with Bangladesh on Rohingya issue, the press secretary said.

Among others, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam attended the meeting.

Hamid and Erdogan earlier met in Kazakh capital Astana in September on the sidelines of the first OIC Summit on Science and Technology.

After the meeting with Erdogan on Wednesday, the president held a bilateral meeting with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir.

The Sudanese president hailed Bangladeshi peacekeepers working at the UN mission in his country for their courageous role in establishing peace. 

Hamid thanked him for their support to Bangladesh on the Rohingyas issue.