Speaking to the Anatolia news agency, Vardan noted that in recent years Turkey has started to pursue a multidimensional policy toward its neighboring countries and a multi-axial policy toward the world. Turkey is trying to repair broken relations with these countries, he said, noting that the “zero problems with neighbors” policy would bring important gains to Turkey in both economic and political terms.
“Turkey’s export map has changed and diversified in a positive way. Turkey, once mostly exporting to European countries, sought new markets and thanks to this managed to curb the decline in exports to a certain degree amidst the global financial crisis,” Vardan said, citing the mutual abolition of visa requirements between Turkey and Syria as one of the outcomes of this policy, explaining that the trade volume between the two countries increased from $266 million in 2002 to $1.1 billion in 2008 and totaled $1 billion in the first nine months of this year. It is certain that trade ties with Syria will be improved in the short and medium terms, which will also help Turkey expand into other Arab markets, he said.
Also stressing the importance of lifting visa requirements with Libya and Jordan, Vardan said Turkey should do the same with other countries Turkey trades with most as soon as possible. Vardan cited Azerbaijan, Iran and Lebanon as some of these countries. The MÜSİAD head, noting that the Iraqi market is of crucial importance for both Turkey and the region as a whole, said Turkish exports to Iraq, which totaled $4 billion in 2008 and are expected to reach $10 billion in a short time, can increase to some $30 billion provided that Iraq’s territorial integrity is protected and the standard of living is raised.
