ISTANBUL

Türkiye and Algeria signed 12 agreements Tuesday in various fields during a visit by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Erdogan and his Algerian counterpart, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, co-chaired the second meeting of the Türkiye-Algeria High-Level Cooperation Council in the capital, Algiers.

Afterward, the leaders joined a signing ceremony for the agreements.

Addressing trade between the two countries, Erdogan said: "Last year, our trade volume reached a record of $5.3 billion, and we expect it to reach $6 billion by the end of this year.

"With the efforts we will increase, we hope to reach the target of $10 billion in trade volume that we set with my brother Tebboune in a short time,” he said.

Erdogan shared his appreciation for Algeria's efforts to evaluate its economic potential under the leadership of Tebboune.

"We closely follow the efforts of around 1,400 Turkish companies supporting this process. We take pride in our companies being the largest investors and job providers in non-hydrocarbon sectors in Algeria," he said. "We will strive to increase these investments even further. We are pleased with Algeria's investments in our country."

Türkiye desires to diversify and enhance relations in energy and renewable energy through new partnerships with Algeria, added Erdogan.

Tebboune said Erdogan's visit, despite the "special and exceptional" conditions at the regional and international levels, is a significant success for relations.

Considering the sincere will on both sides, Türkiye-Algeria relations are strong and have open horizons for further cooperation, said Tebboune, adding Algeria has become Türkiye's second-largest trading partner in Africa.

Erdogan and Tebboune also signed a joint statement on the second meeting of the High-Level Cooperation Council between Türkiye and Algeria.

Meanwhile, Türkiye's global news agency, Anadolu, and Algeria Press Service signed the cooperation agreement.