Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has highlighted the humanitarian conditions facing Rohingya Muslims in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar refugee camps, saying Türkiye’s aid institutions will continue supporting displaced communities.
“Unfortunately, a humanitarian tragedy is unfolding here,” Fidan told Anadolu during a visit to the camps as part of his two-day official trip to Bangladesh.
“Türkiye’s helping hand has reached out here just as it has everywhere else, but of course, I wish these tragedies did not exist, and I wish we were not in a position where we had to provide aid,” he said.
More than 1 million Rohingya refugees live in Bangladesh, most of them in Cox’s Bazar near the Myanmar border, according to the U.N. refugee agency.
Fidan said Türkiye had been present in the camps since the beginning of the crisis through public institutions and civil society organizations, providing health care and other services.
He also visited a field hospital established by Türkiye in the region.
“We are here with our doctors and staff. Our colleagues are working tirelessly under these conditions thousands of kilometers away. No amount of thanks would be enough,” he said.
Fidan thanked Bangladesh for hosting the refugees and said the current temporary arrangements should be replaced by a more sustainable solution.
He compared Bangladesh’s efforts to Türkiye’s hosting of Syrians who fled the war, saying both countries had opened their doors to people in need.
Fidan said President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had shown particular sensitivity to delivering aid to oppressed and vulnerable communities, whether nearby or far away.
Although conditions in the camps remain difficult, Fidan said the morale of Turkish health workers and aid staff was high.
“They are working tirelessly. May God be pleased with them. May their efforts not go to waste,” he said.
