Turkey + Qatar boost trade relations: Turkey inked eight agreements with Qatar to facilitate trade as well as enhance military and technical cooperation during a Turkey-Qatar Supreme Strategic Committee meeting in Ankara, Kuwait News Agency (Kuna) reported on Thursday. The agreements include two MoUs on collaboration in document and archive management, media, and communication. The two parties also reviewed bilateral partnerships in trade, investment, energy, and industry.

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ICYMI- Turkey, Qatar, the UAE and Iraq signed apreliminary agreement in April to work together on the Development Road project, which aims to connect Iraq's Grand Faw Port to Turkey's border via a rail and road network.

IN OTHER TURKEY UPDATES- Brics taps Turkey for partner membership: Turkey has been offered partner country status by the Brics group of nations, though there is no word as to whether Ankara has accepted the proposal, Al Arabiya reported last week, citing comments by Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat. Ankara views the BRICS group as a chance to enhance economic cooperation with its member countries, rather than as a substitute for its Western relationships or NATO membership, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated at a BRICS summit last month.

What is a partner membership? The latest Brics summit yielded an agreement to create a new category of Brics partner countries — with 13 nations reported to have been offered this status. Although there are no official confirmations, some of the countries named include Malaysia, Nigeria, Algeria, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

Nigeria is pursuing a USD 5 bn trade facility from Saudi Arabia to aid its economic reform plans, Bloomberg reported last week. President Bola Tinubu discussed the proposal with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the Arab-Islamic Summit in Riyadh. The pair explored potential areas of cooperation, including oil and gas, infrastructure, and agriculture. The two countries strengthened ties last year by forming the Nigeria-Saudi Arabia Business Council to boost the flow of investment and trade.

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