ANKARA/RIYADH, April 28 (Reuters) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived in Saudi Arabia on Thursday for the first high-level visit in years which he hopes will herald a new era of relations after intense efforts to mend strained ties.

Erdogan met King Salman in an official ceremony at al-Salam Palace in the Red Sea city of Jeddah, the Turkish presidency said in a statement.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom’s de facto ruler, attended the ceremony before having a one-on-one meeting with Erdogan, Ankara’s communications office said on Twitter.

Erdogan’s visit, which his office says was at the invitation of the Saudi king, marks the culmination of a months-long campaign to restore ties, including dropping a trial in the journalist’s murder Saudi Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul in 2018.

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Bilateral relations were very strained after Khashoggi was killed and dismembered by a Saudi commando at the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul in 2018. At the time, Erdogan accused the “highest levels” of the Saudi government of giving the orders, but Ankara has since softened its tone significantly.

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Speaking to reporters ahead of his departure for Jeddah, Erdogan said Thursday’s visit was “a manifestation of our common will” to improve ties and strengthen political, military and cultural relations.

He added that it would be mutually beneficial to strengthen cooperation in areas such as health, energy, food security, defense industry and finance.

“With joint efforts, I believe we will take our ties even beyond what they were in the past,” he said.

In conciliatory remarks that contrast sharply with the war of words in the wake of Khashoggi’s murder, Erdogan cited the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan as an appropriate time for the visit, saying it was the month to “replenish and strengthen fraternal bonds.

Ankara hopes the visit will end an unofficial Saudi boycott of Turkish imports, imposed in 2020 amid the Khashoggi standoff. The boycott reduced Turkish imports into the kingdom by 98%.

A senior Turkish official said there was a “very positive” atmosphere ahead of the trip, adding: “The groundwork is ready for us to act in unison again on trade, investment and regional issues.” .

The visit comes as Turkey grapples with the economic fallout from the war between its Black Sea neighbors Ukraine and Russia.

Turkey’s economy has been struggling for years and a pound crisis erupted in late 2021 due to an unorthodox monetary policy backed by Erdogan that drove inflation above 60%.

Turkey wants Saudi Arabia to join an existing currency exchange network currently worth $28 billion that already involves China, South Korea, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. It is also considering investments and contracts similar to those signed with Abu Dhabi, officials said.

Erdogan’s trip is part of a wider charm offensive aimed at mending Turkey’s strained ties in the region, including with Egypt, Israel and the United Arab Emirates.

Diplomats and analysts say the overtures are needed to help ease economic and political pressures after Turkey’s policies in Syria, Libya and elsewhere in recent years have left it increasingly isolated.

“Erdogan is pragmatic and a political animal, and his polls may not last a year if he cannot revive employment,” a Western diplomat said. “So he’s partly looking for deals and funding in Saudi Arabia, and a swap line for maybe $10-20 billion would be something worthwhile.”

Additional reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen and Can Sezer in Istanbul, Tuvan Gumrukcu and Ece Toksabay in Ankara, Aziz El Yaakoubi in Riyadh and Lilian Wagdy in Cairo; Written by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Jonathan Spicer, William Maclean, Alexandra Hudson

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