By Orhan Coskun and Tuvan Gumrukcu
ANKARA (Reuters) – Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Wednesday visits Turkey for the first time in years for talks with President Tayyip Erdogan with the aim of fully normalizing broken ties following the assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
The visit is a step in Prince Mohammed’s efforts to rehabilitate his image beyond the Gulf, and comes when Erdogan seeks financial support that could help ease Turkey’s besieged economy ahead of a by-election for president.
In April, Erdogan held individual talks with Prince Mohammed in Saudi Arabia after a few months of travel to repair relations between regional powers, including the abandonment of the Turkish trial over Khashoggi’s assassination in 2018. in Istanbul.
Erdogan said last week that he and the de facto leader of Riyadh would discuss “to what higher level” they can bring ties during talks in Ankara.
The visit is expected to lead to “a full normalization and restoration of the pre-crisis period,” a senior Turkish official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. “A new era will begin.”
Erdogan was scheduled to welcome the Crown Prince to the Presidential Palace for talks in the afternoon. No public statements are expected.
The Turkish official said the two countries had lifted restrictions on trade, flights and the projection of television series, with mutual negative media coverage also stalled.
Agreements on energy, economy and security would be signed during the visit, while a plan is also being worked out for Saudi funds to enter capital markets in Turkey, the official said.
However, he said negotiations on a possible line of foreign exchange – which could help restore Turkey’s small foreign exchange reserves – were not progressing “as quickly as desired” and would be discussed in private. between Erdogan and Prince Mohammed.
THE CRITICISM STOPPED
Prince Mohammed is on his first tour outside the Gulf region in more than three years, including a visit to Jordan.
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Ties between Ankara and Riyadh worsened after a Saudi attack team killed and dismembered Khashoggi in 2018 at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul. At the time, Erdogan blamed it on the “highest levels” of the Saudi government.
The visit, including the welcome ceremony at the palace, marks a turning point in their relations. Ankara stopped all criticism and stopped its trial for murder in April, moving the case to Riyadh in a measure condemned by human rights groups.
Prince Mohammed has been harnessing Saudi Arabia’s great wealth and oil production capacity to attract Western leaders and private trading partners, in the hope that changing geopolitics and a focus on social and economic reforms will soften criticism. in its human rights record.
U.S. President Joe Biden will visit Saudi Arabia in July as Washington struggles with record gas prices and building a single front against Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.
The visit also comes when the Turkish economy is very tense due to the fall of the lira and inflation exceeding 70%. Analysts say Saudi funds and foreign currency could help Erdogan strengthen support ahead of the June 2023 elections.
The Turkish official said that Saudi Arabia may be interested in companies of the Turkish Heritage Fund or elsewhere, or in making investments similar to those in the United Arab Emirates in recent months.
Leaders will also discuss the possible sale of Turkish armed drones in Riyadh, the person added.
Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), said on Tuesday that Erdogan would “embrace the man who ordered Khashoggi’s death”.
Prince Mohammed denies any involvement in the assassination.
(Additional report by Aziz El Yaakoubi in Riyadh and Daren Butler in Istanbul; Edited by Jonathan Spicer and Angus MacSwan)