TRT to launch Arabic channel next month

The long-awaited 12th channel of the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), broadcasting in Arabic, will go on air next month. The channel's staff is diverse, bringing together individuals from various Arab nations along with Arabic-speaking Turkish TV professionals. The channel will also feature some foreign experience, with several news presenters brought in from Al Jazeera TV. In addition to this, for political discussion programs, experts are being invited to Turkey from the Middle East and Arabic-speaking countries. The new TRT project, TRT Turkiye, is to include news and documentaries covering politics, economics and cultural topics. The channel's target audience includes Turkey, the Middle East and North Africa, and viewers in other nations as far as Pakistan. TRT Turkiye emerged in line with needs arising from the country's foreign policy and other developments, said TRT Istanbul head Sakir Ozbek. "We've lived together for many years in this region," he added. "Following World War I, there was a huge disconnect between us. Now we're trying to bridge that gap. The best way to do this is to explain ourselves and our position to them in their own language." He added, "We've entered into agreements in all the Arabic-speaking countries to enable our channel to be carried there by satellite." After TRT Turkiye's expected launch on Feb. 21, TRT also has plans for Farsi and English-language channels, with the possibility of a Russian-language channel. TRT Turkiye's broadcasting standards will be comparable to stations like the BBC, he said.