KIEV - State Minister Kursad Tuzmen has said on Wednesday that they targeted to turn the Black Sea into a complete free trade area between Turkey and Ukraine where ''taxes were reduced and trade increased rapidly''.
Speaking at the Fourth Meeting of the Turkish-Ukrainian Joint Economic Commission in Kiev, Tuzmen said that both countries had important privatization projects, adding, ''we have to mutually encourage our businessmen and institutions.''
Tuzmen said that as Turkey, they wanted to bring the trade with countries in the region, particularly Ukraine to the highest level under the government's ''Neighboring and Surrounding Countries Strategy''.
Stressing that there was a need for a road map in process of development of commercial and economic relations, Tuzmen said that legal framework of commercial and economic developments should be determined and deficiencies should be overcome.
Noting that the trade volume between Turkey and Ukraine did not reflect the real potential, Tuzmen said that export tax that had been put by Ukraine on the scrap iron in 2002 had negatively affected the Turkish steel-iron sector and it should be corrected as soon as possible.
Stating that total cost of business that Turkish contractors had undertaken in Ukraine was only 880 million U.S. dollars, Tuzmen said, ''we are willing to undertake all appropriate infrastructure and superstructure projects in Ukraine.''
(MS-AÖ) 25.02.2004