Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Meshal welcomes Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Kuwait City. Turkish Presidency Press Office / AFP
Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Meshal welcomes Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Kuwait City. Turkish Presidency Press Office / AFP
Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Meshal welcomes Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Kuwait City. Turkish Presidency Press Office / AFP
Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Meshal welcomes Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Kuwait City. Turkish Presidency Press Office / AFP

Turkey's Erdogan calls for united front on Gaza truce during visit to Kuwait


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Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stressed the importance of maintaining the "hard-won" ceasefire in Gaza during talks with Kuwait's Emir on the first stop of a Gulf tour on Tuesday.

"It is important for the Islamic world to present a united front on this issue, as always," Mr Erdogan told Sheikh Meshal, as reported by the Turkish presidency's communications office.

Ankara played a key role in securing the US-backed agreement between Hamas and Israel to end more than two years of war in the Palestinian territory, alongside Egypt and Qatar, the next stop on Mr Erdogan's tour.

The presidency said Mr Erdogan and Sheikh Meshal held talks on a free-trade agreement between Turkey and the Gulf Co-operation Council.

Turkey and Kuwait announced the signing of several deals during the visit, including a contract worth nearly $489 million for Turkish construction company Kuzu to build a wastewater treatment plant for Al Mutlaa city, a project north of the Kuwaiti capital.

The two countries also signed deals on co-operation in energy, direct investment and maritime transport, Turkey's Anadolu news agency reported.

Mr Erdogan presented Sheikh Mishal with a Togg, an electric car manufactured in Turkey.

Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Meshal received a Turkish-made electric car as a gift from President Erdogan. AFP
Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Meshal received a Turkish-made electric car as a gift from President Erdogan. AFP

Turkey and Kuwait have long had solid diplomatic ties that could propel deeper co-operation, experts say. In a policy brief released last week, analyst Gorkhan Eli said the nations could do so in several ways: by establishing joint defence industry production, maintenance and training facilities in Kuwait; opening a joint investment platform; and co-operating more closely on logistics corridors and port management.

"Together, they can create a stabilising axis in the Gulf – particularly relevant at a time when the region faces escalating Israeli aggression, intensified Iran-Gulf rivalry, and growing great-power competition," Mr Eli said.

The next stop on Mr Erdogan's three-day tour is Qatar, Anadolu said. He will meet Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim on Wednesday after arriving in Doha on Tuesday night.

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Updated: October 21, 2025, 5:48 PM