ISTANBUL 

Türkiye attaches great importance to its longstanding relations with Germany, the Turkish president said on Monday.

"Türkiye attaches great importance to its longstanding relations with friendly and allied Germany, which encompass political, economic, military, cultural, and humanitarian dimensions," Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in his message on the 10th anniversary of the Turkish-German University in Istanbul.

Türkiye considers the more than 3 million of its people living in Germany as a "human bridge" between the two countries, he said.

"The German citizens living in Türkiye and our growing commercial relations are the clearest indicators of our friendship," the Turkish president added.

Stressing that Ankara and Berlin have always been in communication, cooperation, and solidarity throughout history, Erdogan said: "I sincerely believe that the friendly relations between Türkiye and Germany will become even stronger from now on.”