Turkey calls for mutual visa removal with Egypt

Turkish Industry and Trade Minister Nihat Ergun said Tuesday the visa requirement between Turkey and Egypt must be ended.

Minister Ergun had a tete-a-tete meeting with Egyptian Minister of Foreign Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid after which the two ministers held a joint press conference.

Visa requirement between Turkey and Egypt must be ended. Hopefully, talks on the issue would be completed and visa requirement between our two countries would come to an end, Ergun stressed.

Our two countries share deep historical and cultural relations. The geography we are situated on presents many opportunities to our two countries. Businesspeople, investors and the peoples of the two countries must benefit from such opportunities, Ergun noted.

We are working to promote relations between Turkey and Egypt. One of the steps taken in this direction was the signing of a free trade agreement. With this agreement, the trade volume between Turkey and Egypt exceeded three billion USD, Ergun said.

There are other steps that we must take. We have evaluated such steps. We will focus on strengthening relations between Turkish and Egyptian banks. When Turkish banks open branches in Egypt and vice versa, the task of businesspeople would get easier, Ergun said.

Increasing the number of flights between Turkey and Egypt would facilitate the visit of more businesspeople and tourists, Ergun said.

The end of visa requirement will contribute to the development of investments and tourism, Ergun stressed.

With the implementation of a free trade agreement, trade volume between Turkey and Egypt grew. With this agreement, Turkish investments in Egypt have risen. More than 200 Turkish companies operate in Egypt and made investments worth more than 1.5 billion USD. More than 50,000 Egyptians work in factories of Turkish investors, Ergun said.

Turkish investors have brought new technologies to Egypt, Ergun said.

Pointing out that Turkey and Egypt could cooperate in the field of defense industry, Ergun said that the defense industry involves advanced technology and that Turkey and Egypt could take steps to cooperate in this highly advanced field.

Turkey and Egypt could also cooperate in the field of construction. Joint investments could take place in third countries, Ergun said.

An increase in the number of mutual investments would have a positive impact on the African continent. Turkey and Egypt are two important centers in the region and have numerous advantages. An increase in the amount of investments would have a positive affect on African countries. Such investments would contribute to the development of technology, welfare and motivation in Africa, Ergun said.

Egyptian Minister of Foreign Trade and Industry, Rachid Mohamed Rachid, in his part, said that the Egyptian government approved 285 projects of Turkish businesspeople.

The projects were worth around 1.5 billion USD. According to recent statistics, up to 70 percent of the projects have been completed, Rachid also said.

/World Bulletin/