2nd round of Bangladesh-Turkey FOC held in Dhaka

The 2nd round of Bangladesh-Turkey Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) was held at the state guest house Meghna on Monday where Bangladesh and Turkey positively assessed the developments in their bilateral relations. Foreign Affairs Secretary Md Shahidul Haque and Under Secretary of Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ümit Yalçɪn led their respective sides in the meeting. Bangladesh Ambassador to Turkey, representatives from the Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Education, Economic Relations Division and Ministry of Home Affairs, and officials from Ministry of Foreign Affairs were present at the meeting, said a press release from Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Both countries agreed to enhance cooperation in trade, investment, disaster management, education, counter-terrorism, air connectivity and other fields of mutual interest. Issues of cooperation in the tourism and development sectors as well as Turkish aids for the distressed Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh were also discussed. Appreciating their close engagement on regional and global issues of mutual concern, both parties also expressed commitment to cooperate in the upcoming 9th D-8 Summit, scheduled to be held in Istanbul on October 19-20, 2017, and in the 45th session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) of OIC in Dhaka, slated for 2018. The next FOC will take place in Ankara in 2018.