By Dildar Baykan and Arife Yıldız Unal
ANKARA (AA) – The United Kingdom regards Turkey as an “indispensable partner with a long historic friendship, ” Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said Thursday.
“We value that friendship enormously, ” Grayling said at a news conference with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Arslan in Turkish capital Ankara.
The British secretary said Turkey had faced “most serious and difficult ” challenges.
“We see it as our job to work with you to help you, support you to have a really strong security partnership in meeting the challenges that we both face, ” he added.
Grayling said a strategic security partnership was established during U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May's visit to Ankara last January.
He also praised the “tremendous resilience ” shown by the Turkish people during and after the defeated coup attempt on July 15, 2016, calling the bid a “shocking threat ” to democracy in Turkey.
“I just want to reiterate that the U.K. stands very firmly alongside Turkey in the face of challenges, ” he said.
Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup, which left 250 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.
Turkish Transport Minister Arslan thanked Grayling for the U.K.'s support, saying: “We will then always stand by the U.K. in its fight against terrorism. We will continue to fight together. ”
Arslan said Turkey was aware of the importance of mutual cooperation for eliminating terrorism.
“We are always in cooperation with the U.K. in this regard, ” he added.
*Diyar Guldogan from Ankara contributed to this story.
