Saudi Arabia and Turkey sign investment and defense agreements during Erdogan's visit

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed cooperation agreements in the fields of investment and defense, most notably the kingdom's purchase of Turkish drones, following official talks they held on Monday in the city of Jeddah, according to what the official media reported on Tuesday morning.

Bin Salman, the de facto ruler of the kingdom, received Erdogan at the Peace Palace in Jeddah on the Red Sea coast, at the start of a regional tour of the Turkish president that includes Qatar and the Emirates.

And the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported that the two leaders held an "official session of talks and a bilateral meeting" in which they "reviewed aspects of bilateral relations between the two brotherly countries, prospects for joint cooperation and opportunities for its development in various fields."

The two sides presented "the developments in the regional and international situation and the efforts exerted towards it."

This is Erdogan's second visit to Saudi Arabia since the reconciliation between the two countries in April 2022, following the case of the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in his country's consulate in Istanbul in 2018, which caused a rift between the two regional powers.

SPA stated that the two parties signed three memorandums of cooperation in the fields of energy, direct investment, and media cooperation, an executive plan for cooperation in the fields of capabilities, defense industries, research and development, and two contracts with Baykar Technology for defense and aerospace industries, especially drones.

And Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman wrote on Twitter on Tuesday morning that he had signed “two acquisition contracts between the Ministry of Defense and the Turkish company Baykar for Defense Industries, according to which the Ministry of Defense will acquire drones with the aim of raising the readiness of the armed forces and strengthening the Kingdom’s defense and manufacturing capabilities.”

The minister did not specify the number or type of drones that Saudi Arabia will receive under this deal, nor the date of their receipt.

An Arab diplomat in Riyadh told AFP that "Saudi Arabia wanted to buy Turkish drones of the type +TB2+ specifically."

The "TB2" model of the Bayraktar march, produced by the "Baykar" company (one of the two sons-in-law of the Turkish president, a partner director in it), proved its effectiveness in Libya and Azerbaijan, and then in Ukraine, where it was used shortly after the start of the Russian invasion last year.

And last month, Kuwait strengthened its army's defenses by purchasing Turkish "Bayraktar TB2" combat drones, in a deal worth $367 million.

Shortly after his arrival in Jeddah on Monday evening, Erdogan, who was re-elected president for a third term after a second election in May, participated in the activities of the Saudi-Turkish Business Forum.

The forum witnessed the signing of nine agreements in the sectors of real estate, technology, media and human capital, according to Al-Ekhbariya channel.

During his three-day Gulf tour, Erdogan is seeking to secure a financial flow to revive his country's economy, which is suffering from hyperinflation and a collapse in the exchange rate of the national currency.

Before leaving Istanbul on Monday, Erdogan said, "During our visits, our main agenda will be joint investment and commercial activities with these countries during the coming period."