European Investment Bank plans to relaunch operations in Türkiye

The European Investment Bank (EIB), the world’s largest multilateral financial institution, is preparing to relaunch its operations in Türkiye, an EIB spokesperson confirmed to Türkiye’s state-run news agency Anadolu.

“The EIB has been invited to review its engagement with Türkiye by the European Council and the European Commission,” the spokesperson said.

“The process for a possible re-engagement with Türkiye, in a phased, proportionate, and reversible manner as proposed by the Council conclusions, has now begun,” they added.

The spokesperson emphasized that the EIB’s activities in Türkiye will focus on areas of mutual interest for Türkiye and the EU, particularly supporting climate action, green transformation, post-earthquake recovery, and migration-related issues.

“EIB Global has financed more than €30 billion ($31.2 billion) in Türkiye since beginning operations in the country in 1965,” the spokesperson noted, mentioning the bank’s most recent financing agreement of $416.4 million last year for the restoration of water and wastewater infrastructure in earthquake-hit regions.

The Luxembourg-based bank suspended its operations in Türkiye in 2019 due to tensions over Türkiye’s oil and gas exploration activities in the Eastern Mediterranean.

In response, EU countries also suspended accession negotiations with Türkiye, reduced pre-accession assistance (IPA) funds, froze EIB-issued loans, and halted comprehensive aviation negotiations.

While recent diplomatic developments have created a more positive atmosphere in Türkiye-EU relations, the impact of the EU’s 2019 decisions still lingers, including the suspension of EIB activities and the halting of most new loans planned for that year.

Before the suspension, the EIB was financing Türkiye at an average of $1.4 to $2.1 billion per year for various projects, including over $2.2 billion for projects in 2016.

$32.1B for 263 projects since 1965

Since 1965, the bank has financed $32.1 billion for 263 projects in Türkiye.

On Tuesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara. During a press conference following their meeting, von der Leyen described Türkiye-EU relations as both rich and complex.

“Our economic relationship is stronger than ever,” she said, noting that bilateral trade between Türkiye and the EU reached €206 billion ($214.5 billion) last year.

She highlighted that the EU remains Türkiye’s largest trade and investment partner, and the commission aims to further strengthen this partnership.

Von der Leyen also mentioned the launch of a high-level dialogue on trade in June and the upcoming start of a high-level dialogue on the economy. She added that the EU is exploring opportunities for the EIB to resume operations in Türkiye and looks forward to continuing talks on updating the Customs Union.