By Zuhal Demirci and Ercan Canbolat

ANKARA

Pakistan’s ambassador to Ankara Tuesday hosted a ceremony at the embassy complex to honour Turkish professor and writer Halil Toker, who received an award from Pakistan’s president last month.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Mahmoud said he is pleased that the well-known writer, poet, historian and professor of Urdu language received the Star of Excellence called ‘Sitara-i-Imtiaz’.

Pakistan’s President Mamnoon Hussain had conferred Sitara-i-Imtiaz, the country’s third highest honour and civilian award, on the Turkish writer on March 23, 2017.

Toker, who has a distinguished career, took part in researches, book writing, articles and translation studies for over 30 years.

The scope of his work is enormous, the ambassador said.

Mahmoud said Pakistan is proud of Toker’s work. He expressed hope that the Turkish writer’s work gets recognition and that it inspires and contributes to work of individuals and scholars.

He also noted that Turkey and Pakistan will organize numerous events in the coming weeks as 2017 marks the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"I am very happy to be honoured with this award. I am much obliged to everyone," Toker said on the occasion.

He said he wrote 50 books, 25 of them in Urdu, and published 200 articles which deal with Turkish-South Asian relations, Urdu and Persian poetry, and other topics.

Anadolu Agency's Foreign Languages Department Director Mehmet Ozturk and International News Editor-in-Chief Omer Faruk Tokat were also among the guests at the ceremony.

Reporting by Zuhal Demirci and Ercan Canbolat; Writing by Meryem Goktas