Erdogan due on Aug 1

ISLAMABAD: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will be visiting Islamabad on Saturday (August 1) for a brief stay here.
He will be accompanied by Turkish first lady Emine Erdogan and a large delegation. Well-placed diplomatic sources told The News that the Turkish president arrived in Beijing on Wednesday on his first trip.
He made a landmark trip to China early in 2012, the first in three decades. Erdogan and his spouse will be received at the Nur Khan Air Base by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif with whom he would have talks later.
The First Lady, Kulsoom Nawaz, will receive Emine Erdogan. The schedule of the visit is being worked out by the two foreign offices. Diplomatic sources are attaching significance to the visit since it is taking place amid serious developments in the region and the Turkish president will be reaching here after his extensive negotiations with the Chinese leaders.
Turkey, despite being a member of Nato, has a defence cooperation agreement with China through the purchase of HQ-9 long-range surface-to-air missile system that involves $3.4 billion transaction.
The developments with regard to Afghanistan and the tension between Pakistan and India would also figure in the discussion between the two leaders. It is expected that Prime Minister Nawaz will also discuss with the Turkish president the developments that happened in Ufa, the sources said. It is understood that the Turkish president will discuss with Nawaz developments of regional significance taken up with Chinese leaders, the sources added.