A conference was held in Ankara with the main title of “25 Years of Turkey-Ukraine Relations” by the cooperation of the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs Strategic Research Center (SAM) and the Ukrainian Embassy in Ankara. The first conference that the relations between the two countries was discussed was held in Odessa, Ukraine on May 5th.
Ahmet Yıldız, Turkish Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs wished success to Ukraine on the presidency of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization (BSEC) that Turkey make part of.
He reminded that Turkey proclaimed Ukraine as privileged in 2003, and that the establishment of the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council in 2011 transformed the relations between the two countries into a strategic partnership. He added that the conclusion of the Free Trade Agreement, which is still being discussed, will contribute to the development of trade relations between the two countries.
The trade volume between Turkey and Ukraine reached $ 8.3 billion in 2008 from $ 126 million in 1992.
Andriy Sybiha, Ukrainian Ambassador to Ankara, pointed out the positive effects of bilateral agreements such as visa exemption, mutual encouragement and protection of investments, and prevention of double taxation. He stressed that Turkey and Ukraine are close business cooperations in areas such as aviation and space, nuclear energy, defense and military technology. “Now is the time to turn strategic partnership between the two countries into practical projects together,” Sybiha said.
Vadim Pristayko, First Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine, noted that Ukraine sees Turkey as an important partner in the economic, political and cultural fields. Speaking about that over 1 million tourists coming from Ukraine to Turkey, he added that they expect President Erdogan to visit Ukraine soon.
