Turkiye determined to take relations with Saudi Arabia to higher level, Erdogan tells MBS

Saudi Arabia signed agreement to develop, implement solar energy projects in Turkiye with total capacity of 5GW

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh on Tuesday and said Turkiye was determined to elevate relations with Saudi Arabia to a higher level, including in renewable energy and the defence industry, Erdogan’s office said.

Erdogan also told the crown prince that Turkiye’s support for stability in Syria would continue and that Ankara would work with Riyadh on rebuilding the country, the Turkish presidency said in a statement.

5 GW solar projects in Turkiye

Saudi Arabia has signed an agreement to develop and implement solar energy projects in Turkiye with a total capacity of 5 gigawatts, Saudi state news agency SPA reported on Tuesday.

The agreement was announced during a visit to Saudi Arabia by Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, SPA said. This includes support for Gaza and backing Syria's new government in the wake of the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in 2024.

Erdogan is on his first visit to the kingdom since July 2023, which was part of a Gulf trip aimed at drumming up investments.

But Turkish state-run news agency Anadolu reported that they would also discuss the "deepening cooperation" between the countries, as well as regional and global developments. It added that Erdogan would then travel to Cairo on Wednesday.

Read More: Pakistan-Saudi-Turkiye defence deal in pipeline, defence production minister says

The visit comes days after two sources told AFP that Turkiye would not be joining a mutual defence pact between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan had said earlier this month that they had entered talks aimed at joining the alliance.

Relations between Riyadh and Turkiye were enormously strained after Saudi agents murdered Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018. Turkiye angered Saudi Arabia by vigorously pursuing the case at the time, opening an investigation and briefing international media about the lurid details of the murder.

The meeting in Riyadh comes days ahead of a potential round of talks in Turkiye between the United States and Iran on February 6, an Arab official told AFP earlier today, after Tehran called for the restart of nuclear talks and Washington warned of consequences if a deal was not reached.

Erdogan has emerged as one of the key mediators leading a diplomatic push to find a resolution between the long-time foes to head off open conflict between the two sides.