Belarus and Turkey have plans to increase the bilateral trade by 20% up to $600 million in 2013, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Turkey Valery Kolesnik said at a ceremony to award the Order of Honor to Chairman of the Board of EMSAS Construction (Turkey) Ali Riza Arslan. The ceremony took place in Istanbul on 12 December, BelTA has learnt.

“Over the past five years Belarus and Turkey have doubled the bilateral trade. In 2012 it neared $500 million. This year, I think, we will add another 20% and increase it up to $600 million,” the diplomat said. Speaking about projections for 2014, the Ambassador expressed hope that the growth trends will remain in place and the bilateral trade will expand by another 20-25%.

According to the diplomat, Turkey has invested a lot in various economic sectors of Belarus. “It is not enough just to trade; we need major joint projects in telecommunications and assembly production. Our countries are already working on it,” he said. In fact, two big Belarusian manufacturers together with their Turkish partners have embarked on projects to assemble vehicles and tractors in Turkey. Turkish business also upheld an idea to establish an industrial Turkish zone in Belarus. “We, in turn, will keep creating a comfortable business environment for Turkish businessmen, so that joint projects will be a success,” the diplomat added.

Valery Kolesnik noted that this year the foreign ministers of Belarus and Turkey exchanged visits and signed an agreement on introducing visa-free travel between the two states. “I think we will be able to abolish visas in February next year. This will benefit not only vacationers, but also business travelers,” he informed.

Valery Kolesnik welcomed the progress in implementing investment projects between Belarus and Turkey, closer interparliamentary ties, higher mutual interest and active cooperation on the level of various ministries and government agencies. “We have drafted a solid legal framework; our countries have signed all the necessary agreements to promote business and investments and offer safety guarantees for businessmen,” the Ambassador noted.


 

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