Belgium’s Queen Mathilde departs Türkiye after economic mission visit

Belgium's Queen Mathilde departed Türkiye on Tuesday following a visit to Istanbul as part of the Belgian Economic Mission.

The aircraft carrying Queen Mathilde left Istanbul after a series of official meetings and events held during her stay in Türkiye, which began on May 10.

Turkish officials bid farewell to the queen at Ataturk Airport.

During her visit, Queen Mathilde met first lady Emine Erdogan at Dolmabahce Palace and later held talks with Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the Vahdettin Pavilion.

She also met Turkish Trade Minister Omer Bolat at the Belgian Consulate in Istanbul, attended the Türkiye-Belgium Business Forum organized by DEIK, the Foreign Economic Relations Board of Türkiye, joined high-level business roundtable meetings with Turkish and Belgian company representatives, and took part in programs focusing on industry, technology, women’s economic participation, and biopharmaceutical cooperation.

The queen also visited the Central Bank of the Republic of Türkiye’s Istanbul Finance Center campus, toured Baykar’s Ozdemir Bayraktar National Technology Center, toured the “Century-Old Elegance” exhibition showcasing Turkish cultural heritage, and visited several other locations across Istanbul, including Ortakoy and the Istanbul Naval Museum.

*Writing by Seyit Kurt