Islamabad: The success of any bilateral relations is based on mutual respect and trust between the two countries. Any relation devoid of these two attributes does not last long. Though Turkey and Pakistan have traditionally enjoyed a good relationship based on religious fraternity. However, recent developments suggest dwindling respect for Pakistan's concerns in Turkey.

Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif apparently faced humiliation at the hands of Turkish authorities during his visit from June 02-03 to Turkey to attend the oath-taking ceremony of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Reportedly, the Turkish side did not accord the same importance to Sharif's visit as in the past.

Besides, the Pak PM's seating arrangement in the second row during the ceremony was deprecating for his stature in a friendly country. Moreover, the Pakistan PM had to face an embarrassing moment when he tried to "forcefully hug the Turkish President". The Pakistan Mission in Istanbul tried to cover up the lukewarm reception accorded to the PM by attributing it to the frequency of Pakistan PM's visits to Ankara, this being the fourth visit after assuming office.

Another snub to Pakistan by Turkish authorities was in the form of the rejection of the request for the arrest and extradition of Wajahat Saeed Khan, known for his candid blogs on the political crisis in Pakistan and for exposing Pakistan Army machinations. He has been targeted for arrest by Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency. Khan was in Turkey to cover the general elections. However, Ankara refused the Pak request.

In the past as well, there have been issues between the two countries. Illegal immigration of Pakistan nationals into Turkey has been a major irritant in the bilateral relations. Tens of thousands of illegal Pakistani migrants arrive in Turkey through land route via Iran in search of a more prosperous future and also in their quest to cross into Europe.

The exact number of Pakistani illegal immigrants spread all over Turkey is not known and keeps changing. At any time, there are an estimated 3,000-5,000 Pakistani detainees at various detention centres in Turkey.

Pakistani immigrants have no regard for Turkish culture, values and women. In April 2022, a Pakistani immigrant was caught sharing photographs and videos of Turkish women on social media. Similar videos by other Pakistani immigrants also surfaced on social media creating a furore in the Turkish population. Turkish citizens justifiably responded with scathing retorts and the social media was ripe with the "Pakistan Get Out" campaign trending in Turkey.

Illegal Pakistani immigrants are also found indulging in gang wars and other crimes including human and narco-trafficking and ransom kidnapping of tourists visiting Turkey. A case for example was the kidnapping of a Nepali tourist in 2022 in the heart of Turkey by Pakistan-origin nationals. Fortunately, the Turkish police acted on time and were able to apprehend the Pakistani perpetrators.

Despite Turkish ministries' and government's repeated appeals to Pakistan government to put in place measures to curb the illegal inflow of Pakistan's illegal migrant population, the Pakistan government has failed to institute measures to assuage the Turkish concerns. Although cooperation between both countries has increased in other areas including defence, however, the above developments do not augur well for their relationship ahead.