Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that his country and Germany aim to increase the volume of bilateral trade between the two countries from $50 billion to $60 billion.
This came in a joint press conference on Wednesday held by President Erdogan with his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in the Turkish capital, Ankara.
Erdogan added: “We hope that Turkey and Germany will from now on talk about joint production projects in defense industries and not about obstacles.”
He continued: “We want to completely remove from our agenda the restrictions we face in the defense industries with Germany.”
He stressed that human ties contributed to strengthening existing bilateral relations between the two countries, thanking in this context the German people for standing by the Turks in the devastating earthquake disaster that struck southern Turkey on February 6, 2023.
The Turkish President pointed out that he discussed with his German counterpart bilateral relations in all their aspects and details, stressing Ankara’s desire to strengthen relations with Berlin.
-Advertisement-
He continued: “Our cooperation in the field of tourism is developing day after day. In 2023, we hosted more than 6 million German tourists, and I believe that this number will increase.”
He added: “We discussed the steps that must be taken, especially with regard to the customs union agreement and visa liberalization. We also exchanged views on regional and international developments.”
Erdogan indicated that he discussed with Steinmeier issues related to the Turkish community in Germany, and stated that they attach importance to the integration of the Turkish community there and encourage it to do so.
He stressed that Turkey considers the new German citizenship law, which makes dual citizenship possible, an important step in this context.
He added, “But on the other hand, our concerns are increasing about the anti-foreigner, anti-Islamic, far-right, and racist organizations that are rising in Germany and throughout Europe.”
He stated that during his meeting with Steinmeier, he also touched on combating terrorist organizations that disturb the peace in Germany and attack representative offices belonging to Turkey.
He continued: “We need more effective cooperation in combating these organizations that harm our alliance. We expect more support and solidarity from the German authorities in the fight against terrorism.”
