President Erdoğan in Malaysia for official visit
KUALA LUMPUR
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim welcomed Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday with an official ceremony.
In Putrajaya, Erdoğan and Ibrahim held one-on-one talks and attended an inter-delegation meeting to discuss bilateral relations and international issues, including the Gaza war.
Following a signing ceremony for several agreements, they held a news conference.
Erdoğan said in the news conference that Israel must end its occupation of Palestinian lands and compensate for the damage it has caused.
The ceasefire between Hamas and Israel appeared increasingly fragile after recent Israeli violations and Trump's proposition about taking over Gaza and removing its more than two million inhabitants.
The establishment of an independent, sovereign, and geographically integrated State of Palestine based on 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, is "essential," Erdoğan said.
On aid to Gaza, the Turkish president said, "We can handle this" if all ASEAN members join hands.
For his part, Anwar said that Türkiye has shown leadership on the Gaza issue and that no other country he has known of has done as much as Türkiye did on humanitarian aid.
He said they would mobilize the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for the reconstruction of Gaza under Malaysia's rotating presidency.
On the Gaza ceasefire, Anwar said that Israel's “aggressive and expansionist” policies continue and questioned chances for progress as Israel has not withdrawn from the Palestinian enclave.
On trade relations between Türkiye and Malaysia, Erdogan said that they have decided to increase the bilateral trade volume, which was previously set at $5 billion, to $10 billion.
Later, Erdoğan will address the Türkiye-Malaysia Business Forum.
On Sunday, Erdoğan embarked on a four-day visit covering Malaysia, Indonesia, and Pakistan.
He delivered a speech Monday at Universiti Malaya, where he was presented with an honorary doctorate degree.
"Despite their geographical distance, Türkiye and Malaysia, which are located on the two different sides of Asia, are, in fact, two friendly, brotherly, and partner countries," he said.
