Turkey on Monday donated military equipment to Gambia at latter’s military headquarters in the capital, Banjul. Among the donated items were 5,000 sets of uniforms, 1,359 cartridges and belts, 5,000 water bottles, 50 five-man tents and 50 20-man tents.

Maj.Gen Yankuba Drammeh, Gambia's deputy chief of staff (left). (Picture source: YeniSafak)

Maj. Gen. Yankuba Drammeh, Gambia’s deputy chief of staff, said the donated items will enhance the operational readiness of the Gambian forces. “This is not the first time we have received gifts from the Turkish government and the Turkish Armed Forces […] The gesture spans three decades and the relation is characterized by mutual trust, understanding and high sense of cooperation between our two armed forces and […] two governments […],” Drammeh said. “It [donation] comes at a time when the armed forces are going through some transformation and these will enhance our operational readiness,” he added.

Turkish and Gambian armies established relations in the 1980s. In recent years, about 1,500 Gambian military officials received training in Turkey. Ismail Sefa Yuceer, the Turkish ambassador to Gambia, said Turkey is committed to intensifying its support to the Gambian armed forces in the areas of training and logistic support. “Within this framework every year, Turkey will provide the Gambian armed forces with logistics assistance, with the exception of arms,” Yuceer said.