Turkey, Qatar: Emir Visits Turkish President In Istanbul

February 12, 2016 | 18:19 GMT

Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani visited Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Istanbul on Feb. 12, Daily Sabah reported. The two leaders discussed bilateral relations and developments in the Middle East. The two countries have a defense agreement and Turkey announced in December 2015 plans to build a military base in Qatar. Ankara is seeking to to build a broader Sunni coalition both to serve as a counterweight to Russia in Syria's conflict and to realize long-term aspirations of being a dominant regional power.