Erdoğan, Sharif strengthen Türkiye-Pakistan ties in Istanbul meeting

ISTANBUL

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan received Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday evening at the Turkish Presidency's Dolmabahçe Working Office in Istanbul.

The two leaders discussed bilateral relations between Türkiye and Pakistan and regional and global issues during the meeting, according to the Communications Directorate.

President Erdoğan emphasized that Türkiye and Pakistan share deep-rooted relations and expressed satisfaction over hosting Prime Minister Sharif and his delegation.

“We confirmed and strengthened our mutual will to enhance the deep-rooted historical, human and political ties between Türkiye and Pakistan in every field,” Erdoğan said on X following the meeting.

“We further consolidated our unshakable bonds, cooperation, solidarity and brotherhood between our countries and peoples,” he added, expressing his heartfelt greetings to the Pakistani people through Prime Minister Sharif.

Following the talks, Sharif said in a post on X that it was an honor to meet “my dear brother President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan” in Istanbul and conveyed the gratitude of the Pakistani people to the Turkish nation.

He thanked Erdoğan for his “resolute support” to Pakistan during its recent standoff with India, which he described as resulting in Pakistan’s “overwhelming victory.”

Sharif said both leaders reviewed the progress of bilateral cooperation, especially in trade and investment, and reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen the “unshakable bonds of brotherhood and cooperation.”

During the meeting, Erdoğan said they will continue working to improve Turkish-Pakistani relations and achieve a $5 billion trade volume target.

Noting that they will strive to improve cooperation between the two countries in all fields, especially in energy, transportation and defense, he said it is in the interest of both countries to increase solidarity between Türkiye and Pakistan in the fields of training, intelligence sharing and technological support in the fight against terrorism.

Emphasizing that the Istanbul-Tehran-Islamabad railway line should be made more efficient and that concrete steps to be taken in the field of education would contribute to relations, President Erdoğan also said he appreciated Pakistan's principled stance on the Palestinian issue and that Türkiye is making efforts to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza as soon as possible.

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Minister of National Defense Yaşar Güler, Director of the National Intelligence Organization Ibrahim Kalin, Communications Director Fahrettin Altun, Presidential Advisor on Foreign Policy and Security Akif Çağatay Kılıç and Commander of the Turkish Land Forces General Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu accompanied President Erdoğan at the reception.