Pak PM Imran Khan to visit Turkey on Jan 3

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan will embark on a two-day official visit to Turkey in the first week of January 2019 during which he will discuss bilateral ties with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and also hold meetings with Turkish businessmen and potential investors, officials said Sunday.

"This will be Prime Minister's first official visit to Turkey," the Foreign Office (FO) said.

Khan will arrive at Turkish capital Ankara on January 3. He will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including Foreign Affairs Minister Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi, Minister for Planning Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtyar and Abdul Razak Dawood, Adviser to the prime minister.

During the visit, Khan and Erdogan will discuss bilateral relations between the two nations and issues related to regional and international situation, the FO said.

The Pakistani premier will also address a business forum and hold several meetings with Turkish businessmen and potential investors during his stay at Ankara, it said.

Pakistan and Turkey enjoy historic ties based on a common religious and cultural legacy that dates back to centuries. The two countries have excellent political, economic, defence, cultural and people-to-people relations that continue to grow each passing year, the FO said.

The visit will help to explore new areas of cooperation and collaboration between the two countries, particularly in the area of economic, trade and commercial relations, it said.