President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday welcomed Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Ankara for bilateral and inter-committee talks.

The pair chaired a high-level strategic council meeting and signed off on eight bilateral agreements, including trade facilitation, military and technical cooperation.

The agreements are meant to elevate Turkish-Qatari to the highest possible level. The strategic committee has signed 108 agreements and memorandums of understanding since its launch a decade ago.

Sheikh Tamim’s visit comes after Doha said at the weekend it stalled its Gaza mediation efforts for now.

Some analysts believe Türkiye, which fiercely criticized Israel over its attacks on Gaza and Lebanon, could play some role in mediation since it does not deem the Palestinian resistance group Hamas, a terrorist group, and some of its political officials regularly visit Türkiye.

Over the weekend, Qatar said it had told Hamas and Israel it would stall efforts to mediate a Gaza cease-fire and hostage release deal until they show willingness and seriousness.

A Foreign Ministry source speaking to Daily Sabah denied Hamas would move its political office from Doha to Türkiye.

“We’re already speaking with Hamas regularly and give the necessary encouragements,” the source said.

Türkiye and Qatar both support Palestine in the face of Israeli aggression, which has claimed at least 43,700 lives in Gaza since the Hamas incursion into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

Mediation efforts led by the U.S., Egypt and Qatar to reach a Gaza cease-fire and prisoner swap agreement between Israel and Hamas have failed over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to halt his war.

Türkiye has been pushing for international action to put pressure on Israel. It cut off trade with Israel in April and joined a genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), launched by South Africa, over its war crimes in Gaza.

Ankara views the West as the main enabler of the war crimes committed by the Netanyahu administration with their unconditional support to what Erdoğan has previously called a “death machine.”

Erdoğan, who defends a two-state solution with 1967 borders for the Israel-Palestine conflict, often notes the urgency of Muslim unity against Israel.

Turkish-Qatari ties

Ankara and Doha have enjoyed strong relations, particularly since the 2017 blockade of the Gulf country by Saudi Arabia and others. The two countries have strengthened military and economic ties in recent years.

Sheikh Tamim is a close friend of Erdoğan, who is credited with making Türkiye an international actor with his diplomatic skills, brokering important deals and raising Türkiye’s profile in global affairs.

The emir last visited Türkiye in February 2023 as the first leader to visit the country following the Feb. 6 earthquakes in the country’s south, which Erdoğan reciprocated months later in July.

The two leaders signed a declaration of cooperation during Erdoğan’s visit to mark the 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties.

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