What political and economic messages does Erdogan’s Gulf tour carry? | policy

Ankara – In his first high-level diplomatic move since the ceasefire took effect in Gaza, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan began a Gulf tour today, Tuesday, that includes Kuwait, Qatar, and the Sultanate of Oman, and will continue until next Thursday.

It comes at the invitation of the leaders of the three countries at a very sensitive time regionally, as Ankara seeks to reposition itself diplomatically and strengthen its presence in the region’s files, most notably the Palestinian issue.

According to an official statement from the Communications Department of the Turkish Presidency, the tour includes a comprehensive assessment of bilateral relations and a discussion of ways to develop them, in addition to the signing of a number of strategic agreements that reflect Ankara’s ambition to deepen cooperation with its Gulf partners.

Humanitarian diplomacy

The Palestinian file, especially Gaza, tops the agenda of Erdogan’s tour in the Gulf, amid intense diplomatic movement from Ankara to stabilize the fragile ceasefire and work to launch effective efforts to rebuild the Gaza Strip.

According to Turkish sources, during his meetings, Erdogan will discuss mechanisms for enhancing humanitarian aid, in addition to putting forward a proposal to form an international working group that will ensure the sustainability of the truce and establish the post-war phase, especially in coordination with Qatar, which has maintained close harmony with Ankara since the outbreak of confrontations.

Erdogan had stressed that his country was “moving to transform the ceasefire agreement into a first step towards permanent peace.” He also warned against the consequences of repeating Israeli violations, stressing that Turkey was following the situation on the ground with “the utmost caution and vigilance,” given what he described as Israel’s “bad record” in respecting commitments.

While Ankara declared its readiness to participate in any international mission mandated with reconstruction or peacekeeping, it proceeded to freeze trade with Tel Aviv in protest against the continued blockade and military operations in the Strip.

Erdogan attaches great importance to strengthening bilateral cooperation with Kuwait, Qatar, and the Sultanate of Oman, as part of a broader effort to expand Ankara’s political and economic influence in the region, and the tour is an opportunity to sign a package of strategic agreements, including the fields of energy, defense, investment, and infrastructure, according to what was announced by official Turkish sources.

It is expected that cooperation protocols will be signed in the defense, energy and major construction projects sectors in Kuwait, in continuation of the path of cooperation that was strengthened during the visit of the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Meshaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, to Ankara last year, which resulted in the signing of 6 agreements in multiple fields, from defense to diplomacy and culture.

Kuwait is considered a prominent Gulf partner for Turkey, as the volume of trade exchange between the two countries reached about 720 million dollars during the year 2024, amid aspirations to double this number in light of the growing momentum in economic relations. Defense cooperation between the two sides is also witnessing rapid growth, driven by the intensification of mutual visits between army leadership and representatives of military industries.

Trusted partnership

As for Qatar, Erdogan will hold an official meeting with Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, and together they will chair the 11th session of the Turkish-Qatari Supreme Strategic Committee in Doha. It is expected that these meetings will lead to the signing of new agreements that enhance cooperation in the defense, trade, investment and higher education sectors.

In the Sultanate of Oman, the two sides seek to build on the momentum generated by the state visit of Sultan Haitham bin Tariq to Turkey last November, which witnessed the signing of a group of agreements in the fields of economy and culture.

Political analyst Mahmoud Alloush says that the relations between Türkiye and these three countries have a distinctive character compared to other Gulf states, noting that Erdogan’s current tour reflects this distinction and expresses the level of mutual trust between the two sides.

He explained to Al Jazeera Net that the political and economic interactions between Ankara and the Gulf states have gained great momentum since the beginning of the current decade, as Türkiye presents itself today as a reliable regional partner in a moment of profound transformation that is redrawing the political geography of the region.

According to Alloush, Erdogan will use the tour to confirm that Turkey is a reliable partner in protecting the interests of the Gulf and enhancing its stability, in addition to seeking to expand economic and trade cooperation through new agreements that support integration between the two parties.

Regarding the Gaza file, he stressed that Ankara is counting on the Gulf role in financing the reconstruction process, considering that this represents great importance to it, because it aspires to play a pivotal role in the post-war arrangements, and he expected Erdogan to call on the Gulf leaders to actively participate in this effort, as it is an entry point to integrating the roles between Turkey and the Gulf in managing the next stage.

Comprehensive approach

For his part, academic and political analyst Mustafa Yateem believes that Turkey has placed its policy towards the Gulf on a more comprehensive basis after the Al-Ula agreement in 2021 and the multi-dimensional normalization processes that followed, which allowed it to build balanced relations with various parties despite the differences in their positions on the Gaza war.

The academic added that the position of Kuwait, Qatar and the Sultanate of Oman regarding the Israeli aggression is closer to the Turkish position, “particularly Kuwait, which has a historical position against Israel, and Qatar, which hosted leading figures from the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas). As for the Sultanate, it represents a special case due to its positive relations with both Iran and the Houthis, which makes it more disturbed by Israel’s escalation in the region.”

According to Yateem, one of the main motivations behind Erdogan’s Gulf tour is to deal with the regional uncertainty caused by Israel by expanding the circle of conflict. He believes that Türkiye’s position as a balanced and effective country in achieving regional stability is increasing within the Gulf system.