Japanese bosses to visit Turkey to explore ties

Erdinç Çelikkan ANKARA / Hürriyet

Turkish and Japanese businessmen listen Japanese PM in this file photo.

A group of Japanese business leaders will visit Istanbul starting Feb. 14 to discuss joint commercial opportunities ahead of the initiation of free-trade agreement talks between the two sides.

The CEOs of nearly 30 Japanese small- and medium-sized enterprises will meet with their Turkish counterparts and authorities in a bid to explore cooperation opportunities in Turkey, as well as in third countries.

A wide range of companies operating in the industry and information technology sectors will participate in the bilateral meetings.

The two countries aim to start official FTA talks June 1, with the aim of extending the alliance between the parties. The issue was recently discussed in Tokyo during a trip to the city by a Turkish delegation led by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.