Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Tuesday Türkiye and Poland are working to strengthen cooperation as two indispensable NATO allies within Europe's security and defense architecture.
"Drawing strength from more than six centuries of shared history, we continue to develop cooperation in every field as allies and strategic partners," Erdoğan said at a joint press conference with visiting Polish President Karol Nawrocki at the Presidential Complex in Ankara.
The Turkish president noted bilateral trade had already reached the previous target of 10 billion U.S. dollars, prompting both sides to set a new goal of 15 billion dollars. He added that Turkish contractors are active in Poland with projects worth around 9 billion dollars.
Erdoğan highlighted defense industry cooperation as one of the key pillars of bilateral relations, recalling previous joint initiatives involving unmanned aerial vehicles and other defense projects.
"As two NATO allies holding an indispensable place in Europe's security and defense architecture, we are working to further strengthen this cooperation," he said.
Nawrocki, in his remarks, described cooperation between the two sides as strategically important and praised the growing partnership in defense and security affairs.
"Poland and Türkiye play a very important role within NATO. Both countries are responsible for defending the alliance's flanks, making our cooperation strategically significant," Nawrocki said.
He added Polish armed forces are operating Bayraktar unmanned aerial vehicles purchased from Türkiye, calling the acquisition a symbol of the close defense ties between the two allies.
The two presidents also discussed preparations for the upcoming NATO summit scheduled to be held in Ankara on July 7-8.