Turkey, Gulf Cooperation Council set to strengthen ties

Relations between Turkey and the Gulf Cooperation Council are growing deeper through an action plan to promote strategic ties between Ankara and the council. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said working groups in nine separate areas – trade, agriculture, transportation, environment, tourism and culture, among others – would discuss concrete projects, including a railway connecting the Gulf countries to Europe via Turkey. Speaking at a press conference yesterday alongside Abdurrahman Hamad al-Attiyah, the council's secretary-general, Davutoglu also said there are efforts to finalize a free trade agreement between Turkey and the council. He also said he had invited the council to open an office in Turkey. Al-Attiyah praised Turkey's positive role in the region and its support on the Palestinian issue. Relations between Turkey and the council since 2008 have progressed into true strategic cooperation, he added. Al-Attiyah also called for Turkish investments in the region.