Türkiye and Romania set $15 billion trade target

Türkiye and Romania set a target of $15 billion in bilateral trade, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Tuesday.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan  welcomed Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu on Tuesday with an official ceremony at Ankara’s Bestepe Presidential Complex. After the meeting, a signing ceremony was held and 6 agreements were signed. Following the signing of various agreements between the two countries, Erdogan and the Romanian Prime Minister held a joint press conference.

“Bilateral trade volume between Türkiye and Romania exceeded $10 billion for two consecutive years,” Erdogan said at a joint news conference with visiting Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu at the presidential complex in Ankara. “Our goal is to reach $15 billion,” he added.

Passport-free travel for Romanian citizens

Erdogan also mentioned that Ankara has implemented a passport-free policy for Romanian travelers. “We have implemented a regulation that will enable Romanian citizens to travel to our country with their identity card,” he stated.

Erdogan also addressed the importance of combating terrorism, expressing Türkiye’s expectations from Romania in the fight against the PKK and FETÖ terrorist organizations.

‘Erdogan is a visionary leader’

Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu expressed his pleasure at being in Ankara and highlighted the significance of the visit.

“Turkish President Erdogan is a visionary leader who always knows who his true friends are. Romania has responded accordingly. Today Türkiye is our most important economic partner outside the EU, our most important ally in NATO, a strategic regional partner and a good neighbor. Friendship is, above all, the most important thing that binds our nations together,” Ciolacu said.

Turkish investments in Romania reach $7.5 billion

Turkish direct investments in Romania have reached $7.5 billion, Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz said last month. Yilmaz added that Romania is one of the top 10 EU member states where Turkish companies invest and ranks first in Europe in the contracting sector.