New Delhi, April 8: India and Turkey held their 12th Foreign Office Consultation session in New Delhi on Wednesday. The two nations reviewed their bilateral relations across various sectors, including trade and investment, tourism, technology and innovation, energy, education, cultural cooperation, people-to-people connections, and the fight against cross-border terrorism.
The meeting was co-chaired by C.B. George, Secretary (West) of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), and Beris Akinci, Deputy Minister of Turkey’s Foreign Ministry. Both sides exchanged views on regional and global issues as well.
A statement released after the MEA meeting noted, “The 12th Foreign Office Consultation session between India and Turkey was held on April 8 in New Delhi. The meeting was co-chaired by Secretary (West) C.B. George and Turkey’s Deputy Minister Beris Akinci. The discussions covered trade and investment, tourism, technology and innovation, energy, education, cultural cooperation, people-to-people relations, and the fight against cross-border terrorism. Additionally, they shared their perspectives on regional and global issues.”
The last Foreign Office Consultation session took place in Ankara in 2022. On Wednesday, both countries agreed to hold the next meeting in Turkey.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar also had a bilateral meeting with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan during the Foreign Ministers’ meeting in Vientiane in 2024.
In September 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Dubai during COP28. Erdoğan also visited India in 2023 to attend the G20 Summit in New Delhi.
Following the earthquake that struck southern Turkey in 2023, India launched a significant humanitarian aid operation named ‘Operation Dost.’ This initiative included sending relief materials, deploying a search and rescue team from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and establishing a mobile field hospital by the Indian Army.
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