Turkey, UAE sign free trade deal as ties improve

AFP | Dubai

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com  

The United Arab Emirates and Turkey signed a free trade agreement yesterday, the country’s president said, the latest step in improving ties long strained by regional disputes.

For Turkey, the pact comes ahead of elections on May 14 as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sticks with contested economic policies that have deterred many foreign investors.

“The signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with my friend @ RTErdogan strengthens the partnership between the UAE & Türkiye,” Emirati President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan said on Twitter. The pact “builds on our longstanding ties to deliver further growth, opportunity & stability for our countries & our people,” he said.

Turkish Trade Minister Mehmet Mus attended the signing in Abu Dhabi during a video summit between Sheikh Mohammed and Erdogan.

The pact aims to eliminate or reduce customs duties on 82% of goods and products, accounting for more than 93% of non-oil trade, the official WAM news agency reported.

Non-oil exchanges between the two countries reached $19 billion last year, up 40% on the previous year and 112% from 2020, WAM said.

“It is expected that the agreement will contribute to increasing non-oil bilateral trade to $40 billion annually within five years, while also creating 25,000 new job opportunities by 2031,” the news agency added.

Early last year, Erdogan made his first visit to the UAE in nearly a decade and called on business leaders to invest in his country.

The Turkish leader’s UAE trip followed Sheikh Mohammed’s rare visit to Ankara in November 2021.

The UAE then announced a $10 billion fund for investments in Turkey.

The Emirates sees Turkey as a route to new markets.

After the February 6 earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria, killing tens of thousands and causing an estimated $34 billion in damage, the UAE spearheaded regional relief efforts.