ALEPPO - State Minister Kursad Tuzmen has said, ''now, we should take concrete steps in bilateral relations between Turkey and Syria. Let's decrease taxes on transit railways and increase investments mutually.''
Tuzmen and the accompanying delegation of nearly 200 Turkish businessmen who are currently paying an official to Syria to further improve commercial relations and seek for co-operation opportunities, met on Friday with members of the Aleppo Chamber of Industry and Trade.
Speaking at the meeting, Tuzmen said that Turkey and Syria were two neighboring countries having the same historical, cultural and religious values.
''Despite all these affinities between our countries, commercial relations could not be improved for long years. However, important progress has been made in mutual trade volume between Turkey and Syria in the last two years as a result of our initiatives,'' he said.
Recalling that the trade volume between Turkey and Syria was about 800 million U.S. dollars last year, Tuzmen said that they targeted to increase trade volume up to 1.3 billion U.S. dollars.
''Syria signed a customs union agreement with Arab countries while Turkey signed a customs union agreement with Europe. If a free trade agreement is signed between Turkey and Syria, our countries will take advantage of these two agreements with Arab and European countries,'' he said.
Tuzmen said that the relations between Turkey and Syria gained an important momentum by the visit of Syrian President Bashar al-Asad to Turkey in January this year, recalling that the agreement on prevention of double taxation and reciprocal encouragement and protection of investments was signed during that visit.
''Border trade centres will be set up and the existing customs gates will be activated by our studies in the border. We will search for ways to increase mutual investment and cooperation opportunities between free trade zones during our visit. Turkish businessmen who are with me here will search for ways to make cooperation and to assess the capacities,'' Tuzmen said.
Tuzmen stressed that they wanted to increase the commercial opportunities with Syria, adding that concrete steps had to be taken about this issue.
''We must decrease the taxes, let's decrease the taxes in transit railways mutually, and increase the investments. In fact there are no borders between the relatives, let's lift the economic borders, too and let's make free trade,'' Tuzmen said.
Aleppo Governor Usame Hamed Adi said in his part that the two countries had important roles to play to further improve the relations, adding that ''we want to work together in fields of trade, common investment and tourism.''
Adi added that a new page and period started in the bilateral relations after the visit of Syrian President Asad to Turkey.
(UK-Öª-AY) 05.03.2004