Seychelles shares ‘excellent relations’ with Turkiye: Foreign minister

By Busra Nur Cakmak

ANTALYA, Turkiye (AA) – Seychelles and Turkiye, which have been supporting each other in international arena, have “excellent” bilateral ties, the top diplomat of the Indian Ocean island nation told Anadolu Agency.

“Relations between Turkiye and Seychelles are excellent. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations, we have diplomatically supported each other in terms of our positions in several international fora,” said Sylvestre Radegonde, minister for foreign affairs and tourism.

“We support Turkiye’s candidatures in several international organizations, but Turkiye has also supported Seychelles in its development in many areas,” he said on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, of which Anadolu Agency was the global communication partner.

Turkiye also supported Seychelles in maritime security when the country suffered from piracy off the coast of Somalia, said Radegonde, who also served as an ambassador to Turkiye, adding they have received Turkiye’s support through NATO forces.

Responding to a question regarding the possibility of opening an embassy in Turkiye, he said “diplomatic representation of Seychelles at the moment is sort of restricted more because of the economic situation.”

The country had 12 embassies around the world but now have nine.

“The closest embassy to Turkiye at the moment is unfortunately in Paris. We hope that as the economy improves, when we look at our diplomatic representation abroad, we hope that Turkiye will be on top of the list for new embassies,” he explained.

- Cooperation between 2 countries

Radegonde said there is massive potential for cooperation between the two countries, especially in tourism.

Seychelles offers a beach holiday, while Turkiye promises various options for tourists, he stated.

“Seychelles is small, and in terms of our numbers (of tourists) that we receive every year, it’s limited.

“But what we can do is share our experiences. Our hope is that in terms of training, we will be able to gain some scholarships in tourism establishments here for Seychelles students to learn from Turkiye,” he added.

Radegonde also said he hopes for the development of exchange programs between tourism experts of the two countries “so that tourism operators, et cetera, would come and learn from Turkiye; how you run your tourism industry, and then vice versa.”

Seychelles, he said, has a tourism academy that offers courses in various sectors which would contribute to both countries’ tourism sectors.

Meanwhile, Seychelles’ top diplomat was “pleasantly surprised” by the turnout and the topics discussed at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, a three-day event held in Turkiye’s Mediterranean resort city between March 11-13.

“I find it a very good opportunity to meet my counterparts. It provides the venue for us to discuss and look at how we can make this world more peaceful, (and) safer,” he remarked.

Radegonde said he met with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, which was their first in-person meeting since he took the office in November 2020.

“We have spoken over the phone before, but it was my first meeting with him. And we had a chance to review the status of bilateral cooperation and see how we can further develop, broaden that relationship and deepen it,” he said.

Radegonde said he is now expecting a visit from Cavusoglu, “and then we hope that the President of Seychelles (Wavel Ramkalawan) will be able to undertake an official visit here, and who knows, maybe after that a return visit by (Turkish) President (Recep Tayyip) Erdogan.”