China has urged Turkey to continue to keep out of its internal affairs, insisting that its policies in Xinjiang are driven by “anti-terrorism, anti-separatism,” in a meeting between the Chinese foreign minister and his counterpart in Ankara, where a pan-Turkic movement has long held common cause with the Uyghur people in the mainland’s restive northwestern region.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited the Turkish capital on Thursday as the second stop of his six-state Middle East tour. During their meeting, Mevlut Cavusoglu reportedly “expressed his opinions” regarding Xinjiang. However, it is unclear what those opinions were.

Ankara will abide by the one-China principle, will not participate in any anti-China actions and will not allow any violence targeting China to take place in the country, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, citing assurances given by Cavusoglu.

An estimated 50,000 Uyghurs live in Turkey, which has at times supported a pan-Turkic identity that includes a broad swath of central and northeast Asia — and at one time embraced the notion of an independent East Turkistan carved out of Xinjiang.

But Turkey was also among the first countries to receive China’s offer of the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Sinovac Biotech, as part of Beijing’s so-called vaccine diplomacy. China has so far promised to send 100 million doses to the nation of 85 million people.

In response to Wang’s visit to the Middle East, hundreds of Uyghurs assembled outside the Chinese consulate general in Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city and economic center, to demonstrate against Beijing’s treatment of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang.

“The Chinese Communist tyranny has attempted to use the most barbarous and cruel means to physically and spiritually destroy the Uyghurs,” they said in a statement, urging Beijing to release their families and close the internment facilities.

“Through the establishment of internment camps, it tortures thousands of [our] compatriots, tramples on Uyghur religious beliefs and enslaves the Uyghur people,” the protesters added.

Wang visited Iran on Friday, following the exchange of sharp rebukes with senior U.S. diplomats in Alaska and a diplomatic meeting with his Russian counterpart in southern China’s Guilin within a week.

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