Turkey and Italy strengthen ties with trade and defense agreements

ROME (AP) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Tuesday observed the formal exchange of a dozen cooperation agreements, including on defense, as part of efforts to strengthen ties between the two Mediterranean nations.

Erdogan was in Rome to attend a fourth so-called Intergovernmental Summit between Italy and Turkey that aims to boost trade and cooperation.

His visit comes at a time when Turkey and Italy have expanded defense partnerships. In March, Turkey's leading drone manufacturer, Baykar, reached a memorandum of understanding for a joint venture with Italy's Leonardo for production of unmanned aerial vehicles. Last year, Baykar bought Italian aircraft producer Piaggio Aerospace.

Speaking after their meeting, Meloni and Erdogan said that Turkey and Italy have successfully reached their $30 billion trade volume target and have now set a new goal of $40 billion, signaling further economic collaboration.

"We will continue to strengthen our cooperation with Italy, which has made significant progress in the field of defense industry, with new partnerships and projects," Erdogan said.

Italy sees Turkey as a key partner in managing migration numbers and maintaining stability in the region.

On Tuesday, Meloni thanked Erdogan, saying joint measures by Turkey and Italy had resulted in the number of migrants originating from Turkey dropping to "zero."

Erdogan said: "We will continue our cooperation with Italy in the field of combating irregular migration in the coming period."

The Turkish leader also said that the sides had discussed possible cooperation toward Syria's redevelopment and would hold more consultations on the issue.