British Prime Minister Theresa May signed a $125 million fighter jet deal with Turkey on Saturday and briefly cautioned Ankara on human rights following last year’s failed coup, in a visit squarely aimed at boosting trade between the NATO allies.
Ms. May, visited both countries for the first time as Prime Minister, promoting trade deals that would strengthen her hand in talks to leave the European Union.
Speaking to reporters at the presidential palace in Ankara alongside President Tayyip Erdogan, Ms. May called Turkey one of Britain’s oldest friends and touched on human rights, a sore point for Mr. Erdogan, who accuses the West of not showing enough solidarity following a July 15 military putsch attempt.
‘Maintain rule of law’
“I’m proud that the U.K. stood with you on the 15 July last year in defence of democracy and now it is important that Turkey sustains that democracy by maintaining the rule of law and upholding its international human rights obligations as the government has undertaken to do,” she said.
In her Turkey visit, as in her visit to the United States, it was clear her priority was on securing trade.
She said the United Kingdom and Turkey had agreed to form a joint working group for post-Brexit trade and would step up bilateral aviation security programme. — Reuters
