Ankara- The Saudi-Turkish coordination council announced during King Salman bin Abdulaziz’s visit to Turkey last April that it held its first meeting in Ankara on Tuesday.

The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and his Saudi Arabian counterpart, FM Adel Al-Jubeir.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to meet with visiting Saudi FM Adel Al-Jubeir on the sidelines of the council’s meeting sessions. President Erdogan will be taking on a tour visiting Gulf states, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar.

A statement from the Turkish foreign ministry issued on Monday explained that the two sides will explore potential areas of cooperation in order to develop bilateral relations in all fields. Regional and international issues will also be on the agenda.

The ministry pointed out that the council was established during the visit of Saudi King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to Turkey between 11 and 14 April last year. Relations between Saudi Arabia and Turkey have developed significantly in the intervening period, with four joint military exercises and bilateral trade of $8 billion.

Economically, the trade exchange between Saudi Arabia and Turkey amounted to $ 22 billion through 2015. Both countries seek boosting trade further in the upcoming period.

In April 2016, a meeting between President Erdogan and Saudi King Salman at the Presidential Complex in Ankara resulted in an agreement to maintain current levels of cooperation between the regional powers while strengthening economic relations, especially in investment areas. The two leaders often speak on the phone to discuss regional issues and exchange ideas.