By Ilkay Guder

ANKARA

Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah was honored with the Order of the State by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday.

“My dear brother, since you inherited the throne in Kuwait you have contributed a lot to develop and grow the friendship between Turkey and Kuwait,” Erdogan said in a ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Ankara.

“Your skillful approach in our region, which faces a lot of critical problems, constitutes an assurance of regional peace and stability.”

Before the ceremony, the president said the honor was the highest he could award in recognition of the recipient’s efforts at forging ties between Turkey and another nation.

Sabah thanked Erdogan for the award and said it reflected the deep and strong relationship between Turkey and Kuwait.

He then presented Erdogan with the Order of Mubarak the Great -- Kuwait's highest order for foreign heads of state.

Earlier Tuesday, Sabah was received by Erdogan at the palace for a private meeting followed by meetings between officials of the two countries.

The day saw six separate agreements signed -- three concerning financial aid for Syrian refugees in southeast Turkey and others on defense, tourism and religious affairs cooperation.

Sabah arrived in Ankara on Monday for a three-day visit, during which he is expected to meet a host of officials.

The emir’s visit is seen as yet another step in the development of Turkish-Kuwaiti relations, which Erdogan recently described as “excellent”.

The visit is the fourth such Turkish-Gulf meeting in the last five weeks after Erdogan met the leaders of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Qatar during a tour of the region in mid-February.