Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu is planning to travel to Saudi Arabia next week, marking the first visit of its kind in years, according to a report by the French Press Agency on Thursday. The official date for the visit, which will be the first for a Turkish foreign minister to the kingdom since 2017, has not yet been determined, according to the official who requested anonymity.
The visit comes as Turkey seeks to bridge the gap with its regional adversaries, including Egypt, where Sadat Ünal, Çavuşoğlu's deputy, began a two-day visit on Wednesday. Relations between Ankara and Riyadh deteriorated significantly since 2018. However, Turkey is taking steps to repair its relationship with Saudi Arabia, which is an important trade partner. The agency reported that Erdoğan spoke on the phone with King Salman on Tuesday, but details of the call were not disclosed.
