Ankara and Turkey agreed to send a vessel to explore for oil and natural gas off the coasts of Somalia.

Anadolu Agency, a state-run news agency, reported that President Tayyip Erdoan submitted to the Turkish Parliament late Friday a motion seeking authorization for the deployment by the Turkish military in Somalia, including its territorial waters.

The announcement came just a day after Turkey's energy ministry said that it would send an exploration vessel to the coast of Somalia in the second half of this year, as part of the hydrocarbon cooperation agreement between the two countries.

In early this year, during the visit of the Somali minister of defence to Ankara, Turkey and Somalia jointly signed an agreement on defence and economic co-operation.

In recent years, Turkey has grown to be a close ally with the Somali government. Ankara built schools, hospitals, and infrastructure as well as providing scholarships to Somalis who wish to study in Turkey.

Mogadishu was the site of Turkey's largest overseas military base. Turkey provides training for Somali police and military. (Reporting and editing by Huseyin Haatsever)