FM Cavusoglu highlights Turkey-Chile relations

By Satuk Bugra Kutlugun

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu highlighted the 'excellent' bilateral relations between Turkey and Chile in an article published Wednesday by the Chilean daily El Mercurio.

"We gratefully remember that Chile became the first country in Latin America to recognize the nascent Turkish Republic," Cavusoglu wrote, adding despite being "located at two distant corners of the world," the two countries were "united by shared values".

The top diplomat said Turkey's goals included strengthening its partnership with the region of Latin America and the Caribbean. "Our partnership will be conducive to multi-dimensional cooperation as well as our global efforts for a fairer world and inclusive and sustainable development."

Cavusoglu said Turkey had been pursuing an open door policy for Syrians who had to flee their country in the past seven years due to the ongoing violence.

"More than 3.2 million Syrians are now in Turkey. We have spent almost 30 billion US Dollars, whereas the total contribution we received from the international community is far from meeting expectations."

He praised Chile's aid in this regard recalling that "Very recently, President H.E. Michelle Bachelet met with Syrian refugees arriving in Chile".

"The humanitarian support and determined stance by Chile is valuable, bearing in mind the lack of help from regions much closer," he said.

- Latin America's role in Turkish foreign policy

Cavusoglu said despite the geographical distance, Latin America and the Caribbean region played an important role in Turkey’s "multifaceted and multidimensional" foreign policy.

"After 2009, we strengthened our presence in Latin America and today we have 13 embassies and 1 consulate general in the region, while the Latin American and Caribbean countries have 12 Embassies in Ankara."

Turkey seeks to further enlarge its diplomatic presence in the region with a view to deepening ties, the minister said. "Thus, we aim to increase the number of diplomatic representations in the years ahead".

Cavusoglu described Chile as "one of the key partners in our outreach policy to Latin America and the Caribbean" and "one of the nations in this region with which we enjoy the strongest relations".

- Economy

The minister said that Chile was Turkey’s 4th largest trading partner in the Latin America region, and "currently the only Latin American country with which we have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in force".

"Moreover, I am pleased that we have made significant headway in the field of defence industry cooperation," he said.

Cavusoglu also praised the increased trade volume between Turkey and the Latin America and Caribbean region, which exceeded $8 billion in 2016 compared to $1 billion in 2000s.

He added that Turkish Airlines had direct flights to six destinations in the region.

- 'Sociocultural bridge’

Cavusoglu said Turkey had granted hundreds of scholarships to undergraduate and postgraduate students from the continent, and continued to provide scholarships to young Chilean students.

"Our 'sociocultural bridge' between the two continents is our young people," he said.

The minister noted the "utmost" importance Turkey attaches to building sustainable relations and cooperation with its development partners in the region.

"Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) has opened two regional program coordination offices, in Mexico City and Bogota. Turkey has purveyed 8.4 million Dollars of development assistance projects in the region," he said.

"All in all, Chile plays a pivotal role in our approach to Latin America. We see Chile as an important and reliable partner in the region, in all walks of life, in politics, economy and culture."