ANKARA - State Minister Kursad Tuzmen sent on Saturday a message to the luncheon held by Turkish-Iraqi Businessmen Friendship Association and said that he believed that they, as Turkish and Iraqi businessmen, would increase the trade volume between the two countries to three billion U.S. dollars rapidly.
Tuzmen said in his message that Turkish and Iraqi businessmen did not convene for the first time and previous studies would continue in the coming period.
Tuzmen emphasized that their aim was to increase the prosperity of Iraqi and Turkish people.
Releasing a speech in the meeting, Foreign Trade Undersecretary Tuncer Kayalar said that activities to restart the system envisaging export of Turkish goods in return for oil were underway.
Kayalar said that what was more important than the increasing trade volume with Iraq was the permanent cooperation projects signed between more than one thousand Turkish firms and private sector organizations and state institutions in Iraq before the recent events in that country.
Kayalar said that export to Iraq in seven month period of 2003 reached 292 million dollars and the export amount in the last three months increased 200 percent when compared with the same period of last year.
Noting that the United Nations allowed transfer of goods under the contracts worth of 533 million dollars among the ones signed before the war, Kayalar said that they estimated that this amount would reach 800 million dollars until the end of 2003.
Kayalar said that more than ten companies signed contracts with Iraq in return for fuel-oil, adding that a Turkish fair would be organized in Baghdad in fall and that they also planned to organize a Turkish Export Products Fair in Baghdad next spring.
Kayalar pointed out that they would organize trade delegation visits to Iraq, adding that they would take certain measures soon for effective operation of Turkey-Syria-Iraq railroad. Kayalar stressed that Turkish Airlines also intensified their studies to start regular flights to Iraq.
Kayalar recalled that Turkey targeted to reach a trade volume which would exceed 100 billion dollars in the year 2003.
There were four GSM operators and approximately 22 million mobile phone subscribers in Turkey and that Turkish companies concluded important projects from China to Morocco to improve the telecommunication services, he said.
Kayalar stated that he was informed that almost all of the 6,800 schools in Iraq were in poor condition, calling businessmen to help and support the education of Iraqi students. Foreign Trade Undersecretariat would start a campaign to this end.
Thamir Al Shikhly, the chairman of the Iraqi delegation and of the Iraqi Businessmen Association said that cooperation with Turkey was promising, and that the economy in Iraq would be mainly based on private sector soon.
Stressing that Turkish private sector was experienced and well-informed, Shikhly said that if Turkish friendship continued, Turkish companies would continue to be the number one in Iraq.
Shikhly said that they wished making cooperation with Turkish companies, adding that ''please directly contact with us, and don't use any mediator.''
Shikhly noted that construction of two hospitals in Iraq would start soon, thanking Turkey in that respect.
(GC-Öª) 23.08.2003