Pakistan keen to expand bilateral relations with Turkey: FM Qureshi

 ISLAMABAD: Turkish Minister for Foreign Affairs Mevlut Cavusoglu on Tuesday made a telephone call to his counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi and congratulated him on the recent election victory of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf under the leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan

Mr. Cavusoglu expressed strong desire of the government of Turkey to strengthen the existing close and friendly relations between the two countries.

“Pakistan and Turkey enjoy exemplary fraternal relations based on common faith, values, culture, civilizational linkages, history, mutual trust and support,” he said.

He also conveyed the best wishes of the people of Turkey for the continued peace, progress and prosperity of Pakistan in guidance of the new visionary leadership in the country.

Reciprocating the warm sentiments, Foreign Minister Qureshi stated that over the years, relations between both countries have been transformed into a mutually beneficial strategic partnership.

He expressed his keen desire to work closely with his Turkish counterpart to expand bilateral cooperation in all areas, particularly in trade and economic sector.

He added that Pakistan and Turkey would also continue to play a coordinated role to promote peace and stability in the region.

The foreign minister also briefed his counterpart about the strong resentment in Pakistan, like the rest of the Islamic world, on the news of a competition on sacrilegious caricatures of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) being organised in the Netherlands.

Both leaders agreed to raise the issue with the Dutch government with one voice, under the banner of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

Reiterating Turkey’s desire to promote peace in the region, Turkish Foreign Minister offered to host the trilateral Afghanistan-Pakistan-Turkey Summit in the near future.

Pakistan would soon host the next round of High Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) at the leadership level.

Both leaders also agreed to meet on the sidelines of the United Nation General Assembly session in New York next month.  The Turkish minister also accepted an invitation to visit Pakistan.