Kuala Lumpur: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan departed for Jakarta today after concluding a two-day official visit to Malaysia. Erdogan, who arrived yesterday, was given a red carpet ceremonial send-off and a guard-of-honour from the First Battalion of the Royal Ranger Regiment (Ceremonial) led by Capt Harith Iskandar at the Bunga Raya Complex of the Kuala Lumpur International Airport here.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, at the sending-off ceremony, Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin presented Erdogan with a special album containing photos of his visit to Malaysia. The special aircraft carrying Erdogan, First Lady Emine, and other members of the Turkish delegation departed at 5.45 pm.

Erdogan’s visit, at the invitation of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, reaffirmed the solid relations between the two nations. Yesterday, Erdogan announced that Turkiye aims to double its trade with Malaysia to USD10 billion after surpassing the USD5 billion mark in 2024.

Anwar today said Malaysia and Turkiye need to collaborate in various sectors, including semiconductors, agri-commodities, electrical and electronics, as well as food and beverages, to achieve the USD10 billion (RM44.68 billion) bilateral trade target. Earlier, Malaysia and Turkiye exchanged 11 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) to enhance cooperation in various sectors, in conjunction with Erdogan’s visit.

The documents exchanged covered key areas such as energy transition, disaster management, defence, trade, and media collaboration. Total trade between Malaysia and Turkiye was recorded at RM24.13 billion (USD5.28 billion) in 2024, an 18.7 per cent increase from 2023.