Turkey's first ever ambassador to Sri Lanka has stated that his country will have a lot to learn from Colombo on how to combat "terrorism", stating that Sri Lanka is "far ahead" of Turkey on the issue.
With the opening of the Turkish Embassy in Sri Lanka this month, ambassador Iskender Okyay stated in an interview,
“Both countries have a lot of common issues. First of all is the fight against terrorism. I have to say that Sri Lanka is far ahead in the terrorism issue compared to Turkey. This is quite important. We would like to learn from their experience.”
“Although both countries don't know each other as well as they should, with the opening of the Sri Lankan embassy in Ankara and the Turkish embassy in Colombo, we will try to deepen our relationship.”
Noting Turkey's support for Sri Lanka at the United Nations, Okyay went on to say,
"In the political arena we don't have any problems with Sri Lanka. We have a close and similar political understanding. We support each other on international platforms quite a bit.”
“Trade is very important. Turkey is opening many new embassies. A new embassy doesn't only mean a diplomatic mission, it also brings with it trade and cultural relationships”.