Türkiye ratifies free trade agreement with Ukraine

ANKARA

Türkiye has ratified the free trade agreement with Ukraine, according to the country's official gazette on Aug. 2.

The agreement was signed on Feb. 3, 2022, and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan approved the deal and its annexes on Aug. 1.

Türkiye and Ukraine's bilateral trade volume was $7.3 billion in 2023, Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said on Aug. 1 after meeting Yulia Svyrydenko, the first deputy prime minister of Ukraine.

He stressed that the FTA is expected to increase the volume to $10 billion in a short period.

Türkiye and Ukraine will continue to strengthen cooperation and increase mutual trade and investments on the basis of common interests, Bolat said.

“Turkish companies will take an active part in the implementation of the Türkiye-Ukraine Task Force for the Reconstruction of Ukraine, which we mutually signed in Istanbul in January this year,” he added.

“We discussed strengthening economic cooperation and trade,” Svyrydenko wrote on X.

Finalizing the ratification of the free trade agreement with Türkiye will unite all the Black Sea coastal countries, excluding Russia, into a single economic space mutually beneficial for all countries, she said.

Türkiye has become a de facto hub for the supply of Ukrainian grain to other countries, the Ukrainian minister added.

“We have sent vessels with grain to African countries from Türkiye, including 25,000 tons to Nigeria and 15,000 tons to Sudan.”

Other key issues included regional trade, navigation security, and demining the Black Sea waters, Svyrydenko said.

The main trade fields between the two countries are iron-steel, machinery, energy, automotive and grain.