ANKARA: Turkish President Erdoğan and Pakistani PM Sharif intend to develop bilateral relations in different areas and vow to sign a free trade agreement in coming weeks. A free trade agreement (FTA) between Ankara and Islamabad is likely to be penned before the end of 2016, as Turkish and Pakistani leaders expressed in a joint press conference in Islamabad on Thursday. “We are aiming to conclude the free trade agreement before 2017,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told media on the second day of his official tour to Pakistan. He said that relations between the two countries had always been historical. “I convey the greetings of my nation to the people of Pakistan,” said theTurkish leader at the very beginning of his speech.
President Erdoğan expressed his gratefulness to Pakistani people for their unanimous support to Turkish people and their democracy during an attempted coup on July 15. The Turkish nation foiled a coup attempt, organized and staged by the Fetullah Terrorists Organization (FETÖ)ö led by U.S.-based cult leader Fetullah Gülen, by sacrificing 241 brave citizens.
Gülen, who ran hundreds of terror cells under the guise of schools, charities and institutions of dialogue, was the mastermind of the coup attempt and ıs facing a life term in absentia as he is living in Pennsylvania under CIA protection. “This group [FETÖ] has been establishing their secret structure under the pretense of ‘peace and dialogue’. But the Turkish nation, as well as the world, saw its dark face on the night of July 15,” Erdoğan said. Erdoğan expressed Turkey’s support to Pakistan in its fight against terrorism. He also stated that the FETÖ terror group has created a tremendous threat for public order in Pakistan, showing his appreciation for Islamabad’s efforts to fight against the suspicious structure. “We remain determined to provide assistance to Pakistan in the fight against terror,” he vowed.
Turkish president conveyed his nation’s solidarity with people of Kashmir, who have been facing Indian brutality for decades. “We are keeping an eye on the Kashmir issue and have serious concerns over the situation,” Erdoğan said. “The LoC situation and the Kashmir issue cannot be ignored,” Erdoğan added. The Line of Control (LoC) is a military control line between the Indian and Pakistani controlled parts of the former princely state of Kashmir and Jammu.
