Turkey and China pledge close security cooperation

Beijing: 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 radicalisation.