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Russia, Turkey agree on trade issues ahead of presidential meeting

10 October 2016 14:54 (UTC+04:00)
Russia, Turkey agree on trade issues ahead of presidential meeting

By Gunay Hasanova

The long awaited meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin will take place on the sidelines of World Energy Congress to be held in Istanbul on October 10.

President Putin visits Turkey for the first time since the relations between two nations soured following the downing of a Russian bomber over Syria by a Turkish fighter jet, Sputnik International reported.

Relations were normalized this June and July through a letter and subsequent telephone calls between the countries’ leaders. Since then, increasingly Turkey and Russia relations have become normalized and are expected to get higher.

The two leaders are expected to mull the current events in the Middle East and in Syria, as well as bilateral relations between Turkey and Russia and joint energy projects, including the potential revival of the suspended Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline, Sputnik reported.

Ahead of the presidential meeting, Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekchi and his Russian counterpart Alexey Ulyukayev discussed several issues regarding the trade relations.

Following the negotiations, Zeybekci and Ulyukaev signed the joint statement on the development of bilateral trade and economic relations.

Free trade agreement between Turkey and Russia may be signed at the end of 2017, Zeybekci told reporters after the talks.

"During today's negotiations the sides agreed that a free trade agreement between our countries may be signed at the end of 2017," Zeybekci told journalists.

He added that the parties agreed on the implementation of the four-year medium-term program.

Zeybekci added that Russia and Turkey will contribute $500 million each to the Turkey-Russia Joint Investment Fund.

“We have discussed an important topic for both of the countries, namely, the establishment of the [Turkey-Russia] Joint Investment Fund by cooperative efforts of the Russian Direct Investment Fund and Turkish fund of capitals. The first step involves each state’s contribution of 500 million dollars,” Nihat Zeybekci said.

The investment fund will be instrumental for business, said Ulyukayev after the talks. "There might be some investment in agricultural industry as well, in producing products with high added value."

Russia may allow import of some types of Turkish fruits and vegetables before the end of the year, but the process of lifting the restrictions will be gradual, he said.

“We are getting ready for this [gradual lifting of embargo] and we have prepared certain proposals on lifting embargo on some agricultural goods. Not all of them, but some,” Ulyukayev told journalists, when asked whether the embargo on some of the Turkish goods may be lifted before the end of the year.

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Gunay Hasanova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @gunhasanova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz

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