Economic and trade relations between Turkey and the Arab world are getting stronger, but they are still behind realizing their full potential," Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said yesterday at the opening of the 3rd Turkish-Arab Economic Forum, a two-day event. The prime minister invited Arab businessmen to invest in the sectors of construction and energy in Turkey. He specifically invited businessmen from Arab countries to participate in Turkey's major planned tenders for the privatization of Turkish Airlines (THY), Turkey's Alcohol and Tobacco Monopoly (TEKEL) and the state-owned Halkbank.

The forum, organized by Al-Iktissad Wal-Aamal Group in cooperation with Turkey's Foreign Economic Relations Board (DEİK) and the League of Arab States, promises to be a major regional business and economic event, at which a select group of speakers and participants from Turkey, the Arab world and other countries are exploring market opportunities and joint ventures in their respective markets.

For the first time since its launch, the forum this year also became a platform for a special high-level meeting of Turkish and Arab political leaders to discuss the future of Turkish-Arab political relations and ways to improve coordination on major regional and international issues. The prime ministers of Syria, the Palestinian Authority, Qatar and Somalia and the deputy prime minister of Iraq addressed the opening session of the forum yesterday. Ministers from participating countries and about 600 representatives of private sector companies from Turkey and the Arab countries were also present, as were senior officials from the Turkish Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB).

Turkey and the Arab world today are at a major juncture that is rich with opportunities and the potential for a deepening of mutual economic relations and cooperation and a widening of investments and financial ties.

Erdoğan praised the progress of the Turkish economy over the past five years and lamented that the Arab countries have not sufficiently benefited from the opportunities that this transformation offers to foreign investors.

Powered by increasing industrial production and exports, an expanding services sector and a large inflow of direct foreign investment, Turkey has posted solid growth averaging around 7.2 percent annually since 2003.

But Turkey's importance goes beyond that to its growing strategic stature as a major military power, its role as a voice of moderation in the region and as an essential route and hub of energy supplies to the West and a potential member of the European Union.

Erdoğan said Turkey's efforts to join the EU were of critical importance for the stability and peace in the region and asserted that Turkish membership will set an example for the peaceful coexistence of different cultures.

The Arab world is also going through a full-fledged process of structural change and economic reform that is being carried forward on a historically unprecedented and rising tide of oil surpluses. The impact of these developments has been evident through strong economic growth across the region, growing demand for consumer and capital goods, a rush toward new development strategies and plans, a massive order book of projects in the Gulf countries and increasing competition for foreign investment and know how.

Alongside all that, the rise of new, enormous sovereign funds, notably those of Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Qatar has made these and other Gulf countries major players in regional and international direct investments, as well as in world financial markets.

Syrian PM: Syria attractive center for investments

Syrian Prime Minister Naji al-Otari, addressing the forum, also invited participants to invest in his country, saying the Syrian tourism and industrial sectors offered particularly attractive opportunities. He said the Syrian government was taking steps to encourage private sector investments and added that investors will soon begin to reap the fruits of the government's reform efforts.

On relations with Turkey, he said authorities from the two countries were working to boost the capacity of border crossings and set up trade centers near the border. Plans are also being drafted for joint ventures in international markets and reducing customs procedures to a minimum at the border, the Syrian prime minister said.

Turkey and Syria have taken significant measures to develop cooperation after the two countries buried past hostilities and launched a rapprochement in recent years. They are now cooperating in political and economic areas and Turkey has been mediating between Israel and Syria for peace talks for the past year.

Israel has a major chance to establish peace with its neighbors and the Arab world, said Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad at the forum, calling on the Jewish state to work for peace and allow the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. The Palestinian leader praised Turkish mediation between Syria and Israel and said his people looked up to Turkey, a country where Islam and democracy coexist, as a source of inspiration. "The Palestinian government wants to stay away from religious fundamentalism and extremism," he said.

Iraq wants strategic cooperation with Turkey

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh said in his address that Iraq was recovering quickly from an authoritarian regime and the US-led war that toppled it become an economically prosperous country integrated with its region and the international community.

This new Iraq, which is now projecting a $70 billion yield from oil revenues in 2008, sees Turkey as a "strategic partner," he said, and emphasized that without cooperation from other countries it cannot meet its huge infrastructure needs on its own. He invited Turkish companies to take part in restructuring and construction projects and promised they will be given special treatment. "We are determined to rebuild the Iraqi economy and democratic institutions," Saleh said. "We see Turkey as a strategic partner and when I say it, I mean it. This is a strategic choice and Iraq wants to go ahead with it."

Qatari Prime Minister Hamad Bin Jasim Bin Jabir Al-Thani was also optimistic about prospects for Turkish-Arab cooperation. "There are wide opportunities for cooperation between our countries. I hope there will be even more productive cooperation between Turkey and Qatar in the coming period," he said.

Somali Prime Minister Nour Hassan Hussein said investment environment was improving in his country after a deal between the government and the opposition ended a political crisis. Somalia's 330-kilometer-long Indian Ocean coast promises to be the world's biggest fishing area, he said. The country is also open to future cooperation with foreign countries in building and operating oil refineries.


Todayszaman