Following Bangladesh’s political transition last year, Dhaka and Ankara’s cordial yet cautious ties are now advancing toward a strategic partnership, with defence cooperation emerging as its central pillar.
Reaffirming this direction, Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Beris Ekinci reiterated President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s invitation to Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus to visit Türkiye during the 4th Foreign Office Consultation held recently in Dhaka.
Bangladesh’s Ambassador to Ankara M Amanul Haq told TIMES of Bangladesh that if the visit takes place, it will “naturally focus on strengthening bilateral relations in the areas of economic cooperation, defence, health, education, and others.”
Defence cooperation
Bangladesh and Türkiye already have several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) on defence collaboration, and both sides are now working to bring these under a comprehensive framework agreement covering areas such as training, production assistance, and technology transfer.
“The defence cooperation with Türkiye is growing, and we want to consolidate it further,” Ambassador Haq said. “A proposal for a joint venture to modernise Bangladesh Ordnance Factories to produce Nato-standard military equipment is currently under consideration.”
Economic cooperation
Two-way trade between the two nations currently stands at $1.2 billion, with efforts underway to raise it to $3 billion in the near future.
“There are plenty of opportunities, and we need to tap into them,” the ambassador said. He added that Turkish firms such as Aygaz and Singer are already operating in Bangladesh, and more Turkish investors are being encouraged to explore the market.
Strategic outlook
As an influential power in the Muslim world, Türkiye maintains close ties with Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Qatar—relations that have been reinforced by President Erdoğan’s recent visits to those capitals.
A possible high-level visit from Dhaka may similarly explore deeper strategic and political cooperation between Türkiye and Bangladesh.
“Türkiye seeks to build stronger bonds among Muslim nations, and Bangladesh—home to the world’s third-largest Muslim population—is an important partner in that vision,” Ambassador Haq said. “It is very natural that such themes will feature in any high-level discussion between our two countries.”
