THE ASSOCIATED PRESS August 3, 2017
Beijing (AP) -- Turkey has vowed to root out militants plotting
against China as the two countries pledged to collaborate on a security
issue that had been a source of friction.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Thursday in Beijing
that Turkey would treat matters of China's security as its own,
signaling close cooperation and a tougher stance against suspected
Uighur militants hailing from China's Xinjiang region. Uighurs share
cultural and linguistic ties with Turks and many have sought asylum in
Turkey.
Hundreds if not thousands of Uighurs who have fled China in recent
years have traveled to Syria to join Islamic militant groups or simply
escape persecution and find a new home.
Human rights groups have long accused Beijing of oppressing its Uighur population and inflaming a cycle of radicalization.
