Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and the communications head of the Turkish presidency on Saturday agreed on joint broadcasts between PTV and Turkiye’s state-run television TRT, including airing popular Turkish dramas in Pakistan, Radio Pakistan reported.

The development came as Tarar, who arrived in Turkiye on Thursday on a three-day official visit, met with Professor Fahrettin Altun, head of communications at the Turkish Presidency.

Tarar is representing Pakistan at Stratcom Summit 2024 being held in Istanbul. Yesterday, he visited the headquarters of TRT World and discussed media cooperation between the two countries.

In their meeting today, Tarar and Altun discussed key issues, including strengthening media cooperation, promoting public diplomacy, and combating Islamophobia and misinformation.

According to Radio Pakistan, an agreement was also reached to form a working group between Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and Turkiye’s Directorate of Communications, with focal persons designated from both sides.

“Pakistan and Turkiye share historical and brotherly relations,” said Tarar, who is the minister for information, broadcasting, national heritage and culture.

He highlighted the “vast potential” for media cooperation between both countries and said that such collaborations would help strengthen public-level connections.

The meeting also covered cooperation in the fields of entertainment and tourism, as well as the development of joint projects, which Tarar said would foster an exchange of both countries’ cultures.

He added, “It is important to raise awareness among the youth about the historic ties between the two countries.”

Professor Altun expressed a deep interest in the development of media in Pakistan and acknowledged that the Turkish drama Ertugrul Ghazi gained significant popularity in Pakistan.

He also noted that Pakistani artists and musicians were greatly admired in Turkiye.

The Turkish official said media cooperation between the two countries would help in the fight against Islamophobia and misinformation.

Last month, Turkish Ambassador Irfan Neziroglu showed interest in further strengthening bilateral relations in multiple sectors between the two friendly countries during his meetings with the housing and finance ministers.

In August, after enforcing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA), a high-level Turkish business delegation visiting Pakistan agreed to remove barriers to increasing bilateral investment.

In May, both nations set their sights on enhancing annual bilateral trade to $5 billion in three years, besides intensifying their defence collaboration.