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Source: Dubai – Arabia.net
A Turkish newspaper reported, citing experts, that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan intends to exaggerate the role of his country’s forces in Qatar, due to financial reasons unrelated to defense and security matters.
Experts in both fields considered that the margin of movement available to these forces is very limited in a very sensitive area for the United States, which maintains one of its most important military bases outside its field in Qatar. Al Udeid base, which houses a large number of soldiers and advanced equipment.
On Thursday, Erdogan declared that his country’s military presence in Qatar serves stability and peace in the Gulf region.
According to the same source, experts describe the Turkish military presence in Qatar as symbolic, regardless of its size, and consider that its role cannot go beyond the “psychological” aspect of providing reassurance to the ruling family, which in fact does not it is exposed to no serious threat from either party.
Direct financial reason
However, those familiar with Gulf affairs confirm that there is a direct financial motive behind Turkey sending its soldiers to Qatar, as it opens an additional door for Ankara to access Qatari gasoline money.
Erdogan’s speech on the Turkish forces in the Gulf is linked to the worsening of the financial crisis in his country, as the Turkish lira hit a new all-time low against the US dollar (7.9169 pounds per dollar) on Thursday, in the middle from the continuing escalation of geopolitical tensions in the region, in which Turkey is heavily involved.
Notably, Turkey and Qatar are bound by a military cooperation agreement, according to which a Turkish military base was established on the territory of Qatar and joint exercises were carried out.
The agreement provides for the formation of a mechanism to improve cooperation between the two parties in the fields of military training, the defense industry, joint exercises and the mutual parking of forces between the two parties.
Ankara seeks to maintain the security and defense relationship with Doha, despite the fact that most military and security experts question its usefulness, given Qatar’s modest capabilities in this area.
Notably, the commander of the joint Turkish-Qatari forces in Doha, Baybars Aygun, discussed with Qatari military officials on Thursday strengthening cooperation and joint training.
A statement from the Qatari Defense Ministry stated that Aegon met separately with the head of the Qatar Army Training Authority, Jasim Ahmed Al-Muhannadi, and the Commander of the Army Language Institute, Hassan Abdullah Al-Abdullah.
Aigon and Al-Muhandi discussed issues related to joint exercises and training between the two parties and ways to improve and develop them, according to the same source.
On the sidelines of a visit to Doha on Wednesday, Erdogan told The Peninsula, an English-speaking Qatari newspaper, that there are extensive strategic relationships between the two countries, ranging from economy to industry, defense, security, investment. and energy.
He stated that Turkey offers Qatari investors attractive opportunities in many fields, such as real estate, finance, technology, defense and communications.
Questioning equal opportunity for profit
Observers often doubt the equality of opportunity to benefit from the rapidly growing relations between Ankara and Doha, as they see the balance completely outweighing the Turkish side.
Erdogan noted that his country’s exports to Qatar increased by about 10 percent over the past year, noting that there are currently 500 Turkish companies operating in Qatar. He stressed that only Turkish contracting companies have implemented projects in Qatar with a total value of $ 18.5 billion.
Turkey sees the World Cup final, which Qatar is preparing to host after nearly two years, a significant economic opportunity that must be seized. The Turkish president emphasized that the two countries will deepen cooperation between them through joint projects ahead of the 2022 World Cup, adding: “The World Cup requires large-scale preparatory work, from security to regulation, and not just in terms of infrastructure investments. “
He also highlighted that joint projects in the military, security and defense industries form the backbone of relations between Turkey and Qatar.
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