On May 16, 2019, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with First Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Onal of Turkey in Beijing.

Wang Yi noted that both China and Turkey are representative emerging market countries and major developing countries. Under the current international situation, both sides should strengthen strategic coordination, increase strategic mutual trust, and safeguard the common interests of the two countries and other developing countries. Highly valuing China-Turkey relations, the Chinese side has always respected Turkey’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and supported the Turkish side’s efforts in safeguarding national security and stability. It is hoped that the Turkish side can also earnestly respect the Chinese side’s core interests in safeguarding national sovereignty, security and unity, and support the Chinese side in cracking down on the East Turkestan terrorist forces with actions to well safeguard the overall situation of bilateral strategic cooperative relations. In recent years, China-Turkey cooperation under the framework of the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative has yielded positive results. The two sides should further enhance cooperation in major projects on the basis of increasing political mutual trust, so as to jointly establish the long-term, sound and stable China-Turkey strategic partnership.

Sedat Onal expressed that attaching great importance to China’s international status and influence, Turkey stands ready to, together with the Chinese side, uphold multilateralism, and safeguard the international order based on international law. The Turkish side respects China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, supports the Chinese side’s efforts in maintaining national unity and fighting terrorist forces, and stands ready to work with the Chinese side to enhance high-level exchanges, increase political mutual trust, intensify coordination on multilateral affairs, align the Turkish side’s “Middle Corridor” initiative with the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, and deepen practical cooperation, so as to elevate bilateral relations to a new height.