DHAKA, Bangladesh

The Bangladeshi interim leader Muhammad Yunus on Tuesday sought a new beginning in historic and cultural ties with Türkiye, an official statement said.

“We want to take our relationship higher than ever. This is a new beginning after the July Uprising, and our two countries can work together in many areas such as education, health care, and technology,” Yunus told the visiting Turkish Deputy Minister Ambassador Berris Ekinci, in Dhaka.

The two sides discussed strengthening bilateral cooperation and exploring new avenues of partnership between Bangladesh and Türkiye in the areas of education, health care, and technology, said the statement from Yunus' office.

Yunus was appointed interim leader in the wake of a mass uprising last year in July, which ousted the government of then-Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Ekinci is visiting Dhaka for the fourth round of Foreign Office Consultations between the two countries.

Before meeting with Yunus, Ekinci met with Bangladeshi Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain, during which the two sides discussed ways to strengthen defense ties and increase bilateral trade volume to $3 billion, up from $1.1 billion currently.

Türkiye and Bangladesh established bilateral relations in 1974, with the opening of the Turkish Embassy in Dhaka in 1976 and the Bangladeshi Embassy in Ankara in 1981.