Türkiye has ethnic, religious and cultural ties with the Uyghur Turks and its stance on this issue is clear, sincere and moral, Parliament Speaker Mustafa Şentop said Wednesday.

Şentop held a videoconference meeting with Li Zhanshu, chairperson of the NPC’s governing Standing Committee. In the meeting, Şentop pointed out that the People's Republic of China has a special place within the scope of the Asia Anew Initiative.

He stated that they wanted to further strengthen bilateral relations by establishing a regular dialogue between the parliaments and increasing mutual visits, and added: "We need to make our bilateral trade with China a more balanced and sustainable structure. We want China's investments in Türkiye to increase."

"We believe that a new and just world is possible, where international law prevails, peace and justice are established, and prosperity is inclusive for all countries and peoples. I'm glad to hear that we agree on this. In order for the relations between the two countries to go further, we should work on the mutual development of parliamentary relations," Şentop said, emphasizing that cooperation in projects carried out in various fields will add depth to economic relations.

During the meeting, Şentop underlined that the Uyghur issue is important for Türkiye.

"We have ethnic, religious and cultural ties with the Uyghur Turks. Türkiye's stance on this issue is clear, sincere and moral. We cannot have an understanding of instrumentalizing our related communities living in the territory of other countries to interfere in the internal affairs of the countries in question. We see these people as a bridge between their countries and our country, as an opportunity to develop cooperation and relations, and we continue our policies this way. We wish our compatriots to be able to live in peace, tranquility and prosperity in the country they live in, in a climate where they have rights and freedoms on the basis of human rights, and to contribute to the countries they live in as respected citizens of their country."

During the meeting, which took place in line with the request of the Chinese side, cooperation and economic relations between Türkiye and China in projects carried out in various fields were discussed.

The contribution of inter-parliamentary cooperation to the relations between the two countries was emphasized. It was stated that due to the joint will of the heads of states, Türkiye-China relations had gained momentum in recent years.