Turkey working for dignified return of Rohingya to Myanmar, Yildrim says in Dhaka

Turkey is working for a dignified return for the forcibly displaced Rohingya people to their homeland, the country’s prime minister told Bangladesh President Md Abdul Hamid.

On the second day of his visit here, Binali Yildirim called on the president at the Bangabhaban on Tuesday evening.

The President’s Press Secretary Md Joynal Abedin told bdnews24.com, “Lauding Bangladesh for its role in the Rohingya crisis, the Turkish prime minister said there are around 3 million refugees in Turkey now. He informed the president that his country will continue efforts for a dignified return of Rohingyas.”

Yildirim arrived late on Monday on a three-day visit. He is scheduled to travel to Cox’s Bazar on Wednesday to visit the Kutupalong refugee camp before leaving Dhaka the same day.

On Tuesday, he paid homage to the martyrs of the 1971 Liberation War at the National Memorial in Savar followed by a visit to the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum in the capital’s Dhanmondi.

Later, Yildrim went to the Prime Minister’s Office for a one-on-one meeting with his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina followed by the official bilateral talks.

In the evening, he called on President Hamid at Bangabhaban.

“The president said during the meeting that Bangladesh and Turkey have very cordial relations. He appreciated Turkey’s efforts on the Rohingya crisis,” said Abedin.

Hamid lauded his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan for his role as the OIC chair and thanked him for convening the OIC urgent meeting after the US announced it will recognise Jerusalem as the Israeli capital.

The president also sought Turkey’s support for the Bangladesh candidacy for the OIC’s Assistant Secretary General for Science and Technology.

Yildrim told President Hamid that Turkish businesses were interested in investing in the Bangladesh apparel industry.

Emphasising mutual efforts to realise the trade potential, the Turkish premier said they hope to discuss it in detail in the meeting of Joint Economic Commission, scheduled for April next year in Ankara.