The Turkish authorities announced that Oruç Reis vessel set sail from Istanbul on Saturday on a mission to search for natural gas and oil in Somali waters.
"Today, we sent our research vessel Oruç Reis to Somalia (…) From this day forward, it will conduct seismic activities in three licensed areas in Somalia, each covering an area of 5,000 square kilometres," President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on X.
"Associated with conflict, instability and hunger for decades, the Somali region will now be at the forefront thanks to economic development, prosperity and peace after the discoveries of Oruç Reis" said Erdoğan.
Erdoğan saluted the ship's passage, accompanied by a number of Turkish ministers and Somali Oil Minister Abdirisak Omar Mohamed through the Bosphorus according to the footage released by the Turkish Presidency.
Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar announced in X, "Today we are witnessing a historic moment for our country (...) we are entering a new era in transoceanic natural gas and oil exploration."
An agreement of "hydrocarbon exploration and production" envisaging drilling in three areas of 5,000 kilometres was signed between the two countries.