Erdogan calls on UAE businesses to invest in Turkey

Erdogan calls on UAE businesses to invest in Turkey

DUBAI: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on business leaders in the wealthy United Arab Emirates yesterday to invest in his country, which is in the grips of an economic crisis. Erdogan arrived in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi on Monday for a two-day visit to revive relations that were long strained by regional disputes, marking his first trip to the oil-rich Gulf country in nearly a decade.

“As the leading representatives of the private sector in the United Arab Emirates, I am sure you fully comprehend the benefits of establishing commercial and investment partnerships with Turkey,” he told investors at a business conference in Abu Dhabi. “It is you, the esteemed members of our business world, who will realize the two countries’ potential, especially in trade and investments.”

Erdogan’s visit comes after Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the UAE’s de facto ruler, travelled to Ankara in November on the first high-level visit to Turkey since 2012. The Turkish president said on Tuesday that that trip “started a new era” with the UAE, adding there was a “strong collective will to develop trade relations and increase investments”.

Erdogan and Sheikh Mohammed on Monday oversaw the signing of 13 cooperation agreements and memoranda