President Gül Attends Turkey-Iran Business Forum
10.06.2014
President Gül and President Rouhani of Iran participated in the plenary session of the Turkey-Iran Business Forum. Delivering a speech at the forum, President Gül maintained that the stronger the cooperation between Turkey and Iran is the more gains they will have mutually.
President Gül and President Rouhani of Iran participated in the plenary session of the Turkey-Iran Business Forum held at the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB).
CLOSE COOPERATION BETWEEN THE TWO COUNTRIES
Noting that President Rouhani’s visit is the first Presidential visit from Iran to Turkey in 18 years, President Gül informed his audience that during the talks they had carried out as part of the Turkey-Iran High Level Cooperation Council, they reviewed the bilateral relations between the two countries. The President, declaring Turkey and Iran to be two old friends and neighbors with deep-rooted state traditions, said the Turkish and Iranian peoples have enjoyed close cooperation throughout history. He further pointed to the huge potential between the two countries through which he said they should boost their existing trade relations. “Our trade activities should not be considered to be rivals to each other. On the contrary, as in the economic relations between Germany and France, the stronger the cooperation between Turkey and Iran is the more gains they will have mutually.
Iran, he noted, has very rich natural gas and oil resources whereas Turkey does not have such resources, which is why he said it attaches human capital, entrepreneurship and private sector. Turkey’s GNP is over 865 billion dollars and it is also Europe’s sixth and the world’s 17th biggest economy, noted the President, adding that there is not customs wall between Turkey and the EU countries. This can provide great opportunities for Iranian investors indeed, said President Gül, declaring Iran to be an important gateway to Asia.
TURKEY’S SELF CONFIDENCE IN TRADE RELATIONS
95 % of Turkey’s exports include industrial products, declared the President, reiterating the country’s self confidence regarding competition. He maintained that through the competition with Germany, France and England, the Turkish industry has become stronger in the last 15 years. Furthermore, he said, Turkey has foreign trade surplus in its economic relations with some big European countries like England. “Our automotive export rate is the biggest one in our total exports. The policies Turkey has been pursuing provide confidence to other countries. This is why, it draws great foreign capital. The foreign investments made in Turkey in the last decade are worth 150 billion dollars. The Turkish private sector has nearly 30 billion dollars of investments in other countries. Turkish contractors have completed huge projects abroad which are worth 275 billion dollars.
It is a priority for Turkey to enjoy trade and economic cooperation with all its neighbors, declared President Gül, informing his audience that the volume of trade between Turkey and Iran exceeded 20 billion dollars in 2012, but he said it was 15 billion dollars last year, reiterating that the real potential in this volume of trade is over 30 billion dollars.
“THE LEGAL INFRASTRUCTURE BETWEEN TURKEY AND IRAN HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED”
The President further maintained that the legal infrastructure has been establihed between Turkey and Iran and underscored the importance of putting into practice the agreements signed between the two countries as part of this. President Rouhani’s visit will serve as a turning point within the framework of the win-win policy, predicted President Gül.
The toughest issue that could create problems between neighboring countries is related to borders, noted the President and he added that “due to this issue, clashes and wars can be seen. Turkey and Iran, on the other hand, has a border which they established in peace 400 years ago. When we settled such a big issue 400 years ago, why don’t we boost our volume of trade and why don’t we encourage mutual investments?”
