Ankara, Moscow nearly agreed to lift all economic limitations: Minister

“Both countries have nearly agreed to lift all economic and trade sanctions. We also plan to establish a Turkish-Russian fund,” he noted in an interview with CNN Türk on July 29.

Zeybekci said both sides will resolve all problematic areas, from visas to charter flights and fresh fruit and vegetable trade. 

“There is also no problem with the construction of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant. The technical process regarding the Turkish Stream has also been ongoing,” he said, adding that flights with Russia will likely start ahead of the planned meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Aug. 9. 

The meeting will be the first since Russia and Turkey began normalizing relations following the downing of a Russian warplane in November last year.

“Our ties will be much better by Aug. 9 than they were before Nov. 24, 2015,” added Zeybekci. 

The leading ministers of the Turkish economic administration, including Zeybekci, visited Moscow on July 26 to discuss ways to mend ties with their Russian counterparts for the first time since the downing of a Russian jet by Turkey last November, which strained bilateral relations in a dramatic manner. 

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Şimşek and Zeybekci attended a meeting with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich at the Government House in Moscow on July 26.

Russia and Turkey will gradually unfreeze trade and economic relations that soured after Turkey downed a Russian bomber near the Syrian border last November, Dvorkovich told his Turkish counterpart. 

“We are here to improve our relations and to bring them to an even higher level than before Nov. 24, 2015,” Şimşek told Dvorkovich at the start of their meeting in the Russian capital, referring to the plane incident, as quoted by Reuters.