Turkish President Erdogan arrives in Islamabad

Published November 16, 2016
People walk pasts billboards showing the portraits of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to welcome Erdogan. ─AP
People walk pasts billboards showing the portraits of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to welcome Erdogan. ─AP

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived in Islamabad on Wednesday evening on a two-day visit.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Kulsoom Nawaz, Maryam Nawaz, and Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif welcomed the Turkish president upon arrival at Nur Khan airbase in Rawalpindi.

Turkish President Erdogan exits his plane alongside his wife. ─ DawnNews
Turkish President Erdogan exits his plane alongside his wife. ─ DawnNews

Erdogan is accompanied by his wife Emine and a high-level entourage including ministers, senior officials, and members of the Turkish business community, Radio Pakistan reported.

The Turkish president is expected to hold meetings with President Mamnoon Hussain and PM Nawaz during his visit.

The exchange of views between the leaders will cover a range of bilateral relations as well as regional and international issues.

Turkish President Erdogan receives a bouquet upon arrival. ─DawnNews
Turkish President Erdogan receives a bouquet upon arrival. ─DawnNews

Erdogan calls on President Mamnoon

Later in the evening, President Mamnoon Hussain met Tayyip Erdogan to discuss bilateral relations and cooperation in diverse fields.

The president urged Turkish investors to get benefit from conducive environment of investment in Pakistan in various fields. He also thanked for the Turkish support for the membership of Pakistan in the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

Mamnoon Hussain shakes hands with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan. ─AFP
Mamnoon Hussain shakes hands with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan. ─AFP

Erdogan appreciated Pakistan's efforts for elimination of terrorism.

Both presidents expressed grave concern over human rights violations in Kashmir and stressed to resolve the issue according to aspirations of Kashmiri people and also urged United Nations to conduct investigations of human rights violations in Kashmir.

He will also address a joint session of parliament on Thursday. The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf 'leadership' has decided to boycott Erdogan’s address saying the party will not attend a joint session held under a "controversial" prime minister facing charges of corruption.

This will be Erdogan's third address to a joint session of parliament in Pakistan, DawnNews reported.

The Turkish president is also expected to travel to Lahore, where Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will host a banquet in the honour of visiting dignity at the Shahi Fort.

Erdogan arrives in Pakistan amid uncertainty of the fate of Pak-Turk schools in the country.

Ahead of the Turkish president's visit to Pakistan, the interior ministry asked the Turkish staff of the Pak-Turk schools and colleges to leave the country by Nov 20 in the middle of an educational session.

The number of teachers and other staff in the chain’s 28 schools and colleges stand at 108 and the total number of their family members at about 400, an official earlier told Dawn.

The number of students enrolled at the school lie between 10,000-11,000, according to a petition filed by school management moving the Islamabad High Court against orders to leave the country.

In August, Pakistan had promised Turkey’s visiting Foreign Minister Mevlut Çavusoglu that it would look into affairs of the chain Ankara wanted to be closed for its alleged links with US-based self-exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen.

Turkish President Recip Tayyep Erdogan claims Fethullah Gulen was behind a botched coup attempt to remove him from office earlier this year and has repeatedly called on the US to extradite Gulen.

Gulen claims the allegations are 'slander' and has called for an international inquiry into the abortive coup, vowing his “full cooperation” with any such probe of the putsch over which Ankara is seeking his extradition.

Opinion

Editorial

Judiciary’s SOS
Updated 28 Mar, 2024

Judiciary’s SOS

The ball is now in CJP Isa’s court, and he will feel pressure to take action.
Data protection
28 Mar, 2024

Data protection

WHAT do we want? Data protection laws. When do we want them? Immediately. Without delay, if we are to prevent ...
Selling humans
28 Mar, 2024

Selling humans

HUMAN traders feed off economic distress; they peddle promises of a better life to the impoverished who, mired in...
New terror wave
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

New terror wave

The time has come for decisive government action against militancy.
Development costs
27 Mar, 2024

Development costs

A HEFTY escalation of 30pc in the cost of ongoing federal development schemes is one of the many decisions where the...
Aitchison controversy
Updated 27 Mar, 2024

Aitchison controversy

It is hoped that higher authorities realise that politics and nepotism have no place in schools.