ANKARA: Kuwaiti Foreign Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Dr Ahmad Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu attend a press conference in Ankara, Turkey yesterday. - KUNA

ANKARA: The visiting Kuwaiti Foreign Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Dr Ahmad Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu yesterday affirmed harmony of their views toward regional and international affairs. Speaking at a news conference with the Turkish minister, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Nasser said his talks with Cavusoglu tackled various issues namely Syria, Libya and resumption of the Middle East peace process.

He affirmed that both Kuwait and Turkey had expressed support for the Saudi initiative to resolve the Yemeni crisis and manifested gratitude to states, namely Turkey, for backing conciliation efforts by the late Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and the current Amir His Highness Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah to settle the Gulf crisis -- alluding to rifts that had appeared among some GCC member states.

On the 57-year-old Kuwait-Turkey relationship, Sheikh Dr Ahmad Nasser Al-Mohammad affirmed that these close relations were marked with mutual cooperation at various levels over the past two decades. Sheikh Dr Ahmad Nasser affirmed that six documents and memoranda of understanding were signed between the Kuwaiti and Turkish sides during his current visit to the nation, revealing that the two states became bonded with a total of 61 accords and MoUs, dealing with cooperation in diverse sectors.

One of the freshly inked deals tackles cooperation for the next two years, another envisages cooperation in the coming five years, he said, indicating that his discussions with his Turkish host touched on health cooperation, research and development. The discussions have also addressed cooperation in education, culture, technology namely teaching and cyber security.

Meanwhile, Cavusoglu affirmed support for Kuwait's shuttle diplomacy for addressing some issues among the GCC countries, describing Kuwait as an "international brand" with respect of its skills in diplomatic mediation. Moreover, he praised the "great legacy" of the late Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad regarding diplomacy affirming that the current Amir, His Highness Sheikh Nawaf, adopted the same approach.

The Turkish minister said he agreed with the visiting Kuwaiti foreign minister to hold a meeting once a year within framework of the joint committee, in addition to a meeting at the level of deputy ministers every six months, to assess the relations at various levels.

Cavusoglu disclosed that volume of commercial exchanges between Kuwait and Turkey stood at $704 million in 2019 but dropped "a little last year," adding that "the aim is to reach $1 billion according to a plan set by the two countries." Moreover, enterprises executed by Turkish companies in Kuwait are valued at $8.5 billion, he said, noting that the Turkish companies are operating within framework of Kuwait Vision 2035. The Kuwaiti foreign minister, earlier yesterday, chaired the second session of the joint commission. - KUNA