Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim arrived here on Monday night on a two-day official visit at the invitation of his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina to discuss Rohingya and other issues.
The Turkish PM is leading a 21-member delegation, including his daughter Busra Koylubay, Chief Foreign Policy Adviser Kerim Uras, Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag and Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmet Yildiz, an official here told UNB.
Representatives from a number of organisations, including Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) and the Turkish Red Crescent, are also there in the delegation.
Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali received the Turkish Prime Minster at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport upon his arrival at 8:45pm.
State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam and Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque were also present.
On Tuesday morning, Yildirim will visit National Mausoleum in Savar and pay respect to the Liberation War martyrs placing wreaths.
The Turkish Prime Minister will sign visitors’ book and plant a sapling there.
He will then visit Bangabandhu Memorial Museum in Dhanmondi from 10:40 am to 11:10am. He will sign visitors’ book there after placing wreaths and paying respect to Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
The official talks, including signing of a number of deals/MoUs, between the two countries will be held from 3pm to 4:20 pm at the Prime Minister’s Office.
After his meeting with Sheikh Hasina, he will meet President Abdul Hamid on Tuesday evening.
The Prime Minister will host banquet, preceded by cultural programme, in honour of her Turkish counterpart at the Ball Room of Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel at 8pm on Tuesday.
He will visit Kutupalang camp in Cox’s Bazar on Wednesday to see Rohingya situation on the ground after his official meetings in Dhaka, including bilateral meeting, with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
During the visit, the relations between Bangladesh and Turkey, which is based on friendship and brotherhood, is expected to be discussed comprehensively, according to Turkish media.
The Turkish Prime Minister will leave here for home straight from Cox’s Bazar at 2pm on Wednesday.
Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali will see him off at Cox’s Bazar airport.
Some 655,000 Rohingyas have crossed from Myanmar into Bangladesh since August 25.
On September 7, Turkish First Lady Emine Erdogan visited Rohingya camp and said what is happening in Myanmar’s Rakhine State is “tantamount to genocide” and solution to Rohingya crisis lies in Myanmar only.
She also affirmed that the government of Turkey will stand beside the Rohingyas who have fled to Bangladesh in the face of ethnic cleansing in Myanmar’s Rakhine.
The Turkish delegation spent around one hour in the camp and distributed relief materials among the new arrivals. Emine Erdogan talked to some of the injured Rohingyas in the camp. Thousands of Rohingyas were seen on both sides of the road and inside camps with high hopes that they will get some instant relief materials.
