Embassy of India
Ankara
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India-Türkiye Relations

There are historical connections between India and Türkiye. Diplomatic relations were established and Ambassadors exchanged in 1948.

High Level Visits

High level bilateral exchanges include the visit of the President of Turkiye, Recep Tayyip Erdogan to India to attend the G20 Summit in New Delhi from 9-10 September 2023. A bilateral meeting was held between Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi and President Erdogan on the sidelines of the Summit. Discussions took place on bilateral cooperation potential in areas like trade and investment, defence and security, civil aviation, and shipping. Earlier, President Erdogan paid a state visit to India in 2017. Besides high level political engagements, President Erdogan was conferred an honorary degree by Jamia Milia Islamia University during the visit. Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the G20 Summit held in Antalya, Turkiye in November 2015.

PM Modi met President Erdogan on the sidelines of COP 28 on 1 December 2023 in Dubai. Both leaders met during SCO Summit in Samarkand (Uzbekistan) on 16 September 2022, during G-20 Summit in Osaka in June 2019, on the sidelines of BRICs Plus meeting in Johannesburg in July 2018 and G20 Summit in Hangzhou in September 2016.

EAM held bilateral meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on the sidelines of ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting, 2024 in Vientiane on 27 July 2024. Earlier, EAM held bilateral meeting with the then Turkish Foreign Minister Mr. Mevlut Cavusoglu during his visit to New Delhi from 1-2 March 2023 to attend G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. EAM also met Foreign Minister Cavusoglu on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on 20 September 2022. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan sent a video message for the Foreign Ministers’ Session of the 3rd Voice of Global South Summit (VOGSS 3.0) hosted by India on 17 August 2024. Turkish Deputy Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Mr. Ahmet Berat Conkar also sent a video message for the Energy Ministers’ Session of the 3rd Voice of Global South Summit (VOGSS 3.0). Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Mr. Hardeep S.Puri met Turkish Minister of Energy Mr. Alparslan Bayraktar on the sidelines of the Gastech 2024 Conference in Houston, USA on 17 September 2024. Secretary (West) Mr. Tanmaya Lal had a bilateral meeting with Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Dr. Nuh Yilmaz on the sidelines of UNGA in New York in September 2024.

Previous Exchange of Bilateral Visits: The visit by the first Prime Minister of India Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru in 1960 was the first prime ministerial visit to Türkiye. In 1965, Vice President Dr. Zakir Hussain visited Türkiye. Turkish Prime Minister Turgut Ozal visited India in 1986; Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi paid a return visit to Türkiye in 1988; Turkish President General Kenan Evren visited India in 1989; President Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma visited Turkiye in 1993; Turkish President Suleyman Demirel Visited India in 1995; President K. R. Narayanan paid a State visit to Turkiye in September 1998; Vice President Krishan Kant visited Türkiye in October 1998 representing India on the occasion of the 75th anniversary celebrations of the Turkish Republic; and Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit visited India in April 2000. Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee visited Türkiye in September 2003. The then Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited India in 2008 and the then Turkish President Abdullah Gul visited India in 2010. Vice President Hamid Ansari visited Türkiye in October 2011. President of India Pranab Mukherjee visited Türkiye in October 2013; EAM S.M.Krishna visited Turkiye to attend the 4th UN Conference on LDCs held in Istanbul in May 2011 and again visited Turkiye in November 2011 to attend Istanbul Conference for ‘Afghanistan Security and Cooperation in the Heart of Asia’; EAM Salman Khurshid visited Turkiye on 24 July 2013 and met Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. EAM Sushma Swaraj visited Turkiye from 15-16 January 2015 and held bilateral meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on 16 January 2015; Foreign Minister Cavusoglu made a brief transit visit in Delhi in March 2015; Minister of State for External Affairs, Gen. (Retd) V.K. Singh participated in April 2015 in the 100th anniversary ceremonies of the Canakkale Land and Sea battles. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu paid an official visit to India on 18-19 August 2016.

Parliamentary Exchanges

There have been exchanges of Parliamentary Delegations between the two countries. Speaker of Lok Sabha Mr. Somnath Chatterjee visited Turkiye in June 2005. A multi-party Indian Parliamentary delegation consisting of Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources Mr. Pawan Kumar Bansal, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs and Planning Mr. V. Narayanasamy and seven Members of Parliament paid a goodwill visit to Türkiye from 20-23 January 2010. Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye Mr. Numan Kurtulmus visited India to attend P20 during India’s G20 Presidency in October 2023 and met with Vice President and Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Mr. Jagdeep Dhankar on the sidelines. Members of Parliament have also been interacting with each other at multilateral Parliamentary Conferences.

The Grand National Assembly of Turkiye (GNAT) had Turkiye-India Parliamentary Friendship Group in the successive Parliaments. The first group was established during the 13th Legislative Year between 1965-1969. Following the general elections in May 2023, new Turkiye-India Parliamentary Friendship Group has been formed, which consists of 15 members. The current Chair of the Turkiye-India Parliamentary Friendship Group is Mr. Mehmet Galip Ensarioglu, a senior Member of Parliament from the ruling AK Party.

Bilateral Institutional Mechanism

Foreign Office Consultations (FOCs) at Secretary (Deputy Foreign Minister) level were institutionalized through a Protocol signed in April 2000. The last round of consultations was held on 10 June 2022 in Ankara. The 4th meeting of the Joint Working Group on Counter-terrorism was held in Ankara on 4 July 2019. A new bilateral mechanism ‘India-Türkiye Policy Planning Dialogue’ was institutionalized between the two Foreign Ministries with the first round held virtually on 22 October 2020.

Economic & Commercial Relations

The India-Türkiye economic and commercial cooperation constitutes an important dimension of the bilateral relationship. Bilateral Trade Agreement between India and Türkiye was signed in 1973, followed by an Agreement on setting up an India–Türkiye Joint Commission on Economic and Technical Cooperation (JCETC) in 1983. Under this Agreement, JCETC meetings are held alternately in India and Türkiye. Co-chaired by the trade ministers of the two countries, the last (10th) session of JCETC was held in New Delhi in January 2014.

India’s economic engagement with Türkiye has acquired new momentum in recent years with considerable increase in India-Türkiye trade. Bilateral trade grew by 28.99% during FY 2022-23, crossing USD 13.80 billion making Turkiye India’s 26th largest trading partner and 13th largest export destination with total exports at USD 9.6 bn (2.3% of total export). India’s bilateral trade with Turkiye in FY 2023-24 stood at USD 10.43 billion, making Turkiye India’s 28th largest trading partner and 18th largest export destination with total exports at USD 6.65 billion (1.5% of total export) while India’s import from Turkiye stood at USD 3.78 billion. (Source: DoC, India)

India’s principal exports to Türkiye include mineral oils/mineral fuels, machinery/mechanical appliances, steel, flat steel products, man-made filament, plastics and derivatives, organic chemicals and dyes, man-made fibres, cotton/cotton yarn/cotton textiles, etc. Türkiye’s main exports to India include machinery, construction material such as stones, plastering materials, iron & steel, oilseeds, metallic ores, inorganic chemicals, precious stones, fresh apple, etc.

India-Turkiye Bilateral Trade

Values in USD Millions

(Source: Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India)

Bilateral Investment

FDI from Turkiye to India stood at USD 227.5 million for the period April 2000-December 2023 (as per DPIIT, India) and total Indian investment in Turkiye was USD 151 million (as per the Central Bank of Türkiye). Defence Cooperation India and Türkiye have progressively strengthened their defence ties through structured engagements and military exchanges. These interactions have enhanced professional collaboration and strategic understanding between the armed forces. Defence industry cooperation is also growing, with both countries exploring opportunities for trade, technology transfer and joint ventures in key sectors. Participation in international defence expos and increasing business-to-business engagement reflects on the expanding collaboration. Beyond strategic partnerships, historical ties between the two nations highlight a shared legacy of military history and cultural connections. Cooperation in areas such as maritime security, counter-terrorism, and emerging defence technologies offers promising avenues for deeper engagement.

Operation Dost

In the wake of the 6 February 2023 earthquakes in southern Türkiye, India made a humanitarian assistance initiative named “Operation Dost” [Operation Friend], consisting of search and rescue teams from India’s National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and a mobile field hospital set up by the Indian Army. Over 250 trained Indian personnel were brought to Türkiye along with specialized equipment, vehicles and relief material in six C-17 military aircraft, who actively worked in search and rescue operations and provided medical treatment through a self-contained field hospital equipped to perform even life and limb-saving surgeries. Operation Dost was among the earliest foreign help to arrive in Türkiye, as a mark of solidarity with the people of Türkiye.

Cultural Relations

India and Türkiye have traditionally shared cultural linkages. Cultural performances, film shows, exhibitions, seminars, outreach to universities are being organized from time to time. A Festival of India in Türkiye, India by the Bosphorus, was held in March-April 2019 showcasing Indian dance, music, food and fashion in major cities in Türkiye. Several events were organized in connection with Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav (India@75). The Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) sponsored a Gujarati folk dance group ‘Saptak’ visited Bursa (Türkiye) in the 34th International Golden Karagoz Folk Competition in July 2022. Teaching and learning of Turkish and Indian languages are also being encouraged and facilitated in each other’s countries. There is Indology Department in Ankara University and ICCR Hindi Chair was established in the Indology Department of Ankara University in 1998. India Studies Centres have been established at several universities in Türkiye - METU, Giresum, Kayseri, Malatya, Cag, Istanbul and Koc Universities.

Indian Community

There are currently around 3000 estimated Indian nationals in Türkiye. Out of these, around 1850 are in Istanbul and adjoining provinces, around 250 in Ankara and remaining spread out across other provinces. They are mainly working in commercial organizations, banks and computer firms, universities etc. There are currently around 400 Indian students in Turkiye.

March 2025

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