By Mohamed Fahd

QATAR

Qatari Deputy Emir Abdullah bin Hamad Al Thani on Monday met in Doha with Turkish Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli, according to Qatar’s official QNA news agency.

The meeting was held on the sidelines of the Doha International Maritime Defense Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX 2018), which kicked off Monday in the Qatari capital.

According to QNA, the two men reviewed -- and discussed means of enhancing -- Turkey-Qatar military relations.

The deputy emir presided over the launch of the three-day expo on Monday in the presence of Qatari Defense Minister Khaled al-Attiyah, Turkish Army Chief-of-Staff Hulusi Akar, and several military officials from both countries.

Some 180 companies from more than 60 countries -- including 33 Turkish firms -- are taking part in the annual event, which is expected to see a number of important maritime-defense deals signed.

Launched in 2008, DIMDEX is considered the region’s largest maritime security exhibition, with a total of $32 billion in deals being signed at the last five exhibitions.

In June of last year, Ismail Demir, Turkish undersecretary for defense industries, told Anadolu Agency that Turkey hoped to employ only domestically-designed defense technologies by the year 2020.